The Art of Impossible Perfection: Demna’s Final Couture Statement at Balenciaga

“I have come as close as possible to being satisfied in this endless pursuit of impossible perfection,” writes Demna in his farewell to Balenciaga couture, marking the close of a transformative decade at the helm of one of fashion’s most revered maisons. The 54th Couture Collection is not merely a finale; it is a culmination—a poetic, exacting thesis on craftsmanship, silhouette, and legacy. Shot across Paris and laid bare in both look and making, the collection fuses the radical spirit of Cristóbal Balenciaga with Demna’s own uncompromising vision for the future of fashion: personal, sculptural, and exquisitely strange.

A corresponding film directed by Gianluca Migliarotti—known for his documentary O’Mast on Neapolitan tailoring—offers rare access into the meticulous inner workings of the House’s couture ateliers. In it, premières, tailors, and designers narrate the multi-layered labor behind each garment. The documentary traces the making of corseted gowns, reconstructed archival silhouettes, and collaborations with legendary artisans like Maison Lemarié, William Amor, and fan-maker Duvelleroy. It is a film not just of fashion, but of devotion—a love letter to the human hands that define couture.

The collection opens with a tribute to “La Bourgeoisie,” a term once synonymous with conformity, now mined for its elegance and severity. Tailored jackets bear tulip lapels that frame the face like armor; high collars evoke both Medici nobility and Nosferatu’s haunting grace. In Demna’s hands, bourgeois tropes are recoded—pierced with irony, elegance, and a commanding silhouette. “Garments are sculptural and intricate in their construction,” he notes, “while embracing minimalism and reduction in their architecture.” This paradox—maximal form through minimal means—runs like a seam throughout the collection.

Corsetry, once an instrument of feminine discipline, is reengineered for comfort across ten different looks. An airy pink debutante dress in technical Japanese organza, a diva gown encrusted in black sequins, and a draped one-seam gown conjure Old Hollywood glamour as seen through a funhouse mirror. These are not nostalgic recreations—they’re cinematic hallucinations. A “mink” coat made from embroidered feathers, worn by Kim Kardashian as a tribute to Elizabeth Taylor, is paired with the actress’s actual diamond pendant earrings, on loan from Lorraine Schwartz. Over 1,000 carats of custom jewelry glimmer throughout the collection—white diamonds, Padparadsha sapphires, and canary yellow stones—turning the runway into a constellation of light.

Other garments are grounded in quiet subversion. A silk bomber jacket becomes as featherweight as tissue; a summer taffeta blouson transforms into businesswear via sleight of hand. One standout detail: 300 kilometers of tufted embroidery used to create trompe-l’œil corduroy pants, a feat of excess that reads as effortlessness. “They’re the first ‘corduroy’ pants I want to wear,” Demna says, with a wink toward comfort as luxury.

A standout thread in both the show and its documentary is tailoring—specifically the collaboration with four family-run Neapolitan ateliers. Nine suits, developed as “one-size-fits-all” garments measured on a bodybuilder, are modeled on a diverse cast of bodies. “It is not the garment that defines the body, but the body that defines the garment,” Demna writes. This democratic inversion of couture’s traditional ethos suggests a radical inclusivity. Migliarotti’s camera captures the intimacy of fittings, the choreography of needle and cloth, the philosophy of hands that have stitched for generations.

Heritage and transformation are braided throughout. A 1957 floral print from Cristóbal Balenciaga’s archives resurfaces on a sequined skirt suit. A replica of a 1967 houndstooth look once worn by Danielle Slavik, one of the house’s original muses, becomes the “Danielle” suit. Each is a memory made tactile. The finale gown—a seamless guipure lace sculpture shaped using millinery techniques—embodies the house’s entire language in a single garment: restraint and drama, memory and innovation, body and architecture.

The accessories deepen the message. Logos on bags are replaced by the wearer’s name, subverting the idea of branded status. Duvelleroy fans, recreated over nearly 200 hours of craft, flutter like time machines: one from 1895, another from 1905. Flower brooches are crafted from discarded tissue paper and silk, offering waste a new role as adornment. Even the couture sneaker—handmade using traditional shoemaking techniques—feels like a manifesto: this is couture for the street, couture for now.

Demna’s voice is not the only one heard. The soundtrack of the show features the names of his team—an act of collective authorship, a rare moment of ego dissolution in a field known for solitary genius. This final gesture is perhaps the most emotional: a house, after all, is not built alone.

As Demna departs Balenciaga couture, he leaves behind not a collection, but a philosophy. Couture is not anachronism—it is resistance. It is an art of slowness, of refusal, of obsessive care in a time of disposability. “This collection is the perfect way for me to finish my decade at Balenciaga,” he writes. “The ultimate minimal sculptural gown…represents everything this House stands for.”

What does Balenciaga stand for now? In this collection: freedom, contradiction, legacy, reinvention. A house haunted by its past, electrified by its present, and—through the ghost stitch of every seam—already dreaming of what comes next.

Boozed Things: A Story Of Intoxicating Folly By Enrico Caputo & Valerio Nico

 
 

photography Valerio Nico
creative direction and styling by
Enrico Caputo
makeup by
Greta Giannone
set design by
Nour Choukeir  
AI by
Chiara Kristler

top and skirt: GIANMARCO MUSSI
pants: VITELLI

shirt: stylist’s own

sweater: VITELLI
skirts: GIANMARCO MUSSI
shoes: MARSELL

sweater: VITELLI

LEFT
hoodie: GIANMARCO MUSSI
jacket: NEITH NYER
pants: GIOVANNI PORTA
shoes: ÇANAKU

top: MOTOGUO
skirt: VITELLI
pants: GIOVANNI PORTA
shoes: MARSELL
kneeler: STUDIO CROMATO

sweater: VITELLI
skirts: GIANMARCO MUSSI
shoes: MARSELL

top: MOTOGUO
skirt: VITELLI
pants: GIOVANNI PORTA
kneeler: STUDIO CROMATO

Couture From Home: An Inside Look At The Making Of Alexander McQueen's Pre-SS21 Collection

AMQ Team - NA_PHOTO-2020-05-15-11-56-08.jpg

As all offices, ateliers and factories were closed over lockdown, the Alexander McQueen design team were sent stock fabric to their homes, which was over-printed, over-dyed and renewed.

This collection harks back to the early days of McQueen and a free, make-do-and-mend spirit. Garments – from signature sharply cut masculine-inspired tailoring to prom dresses - were cut by hand at kitchen tables, fabric was dip-dyed in gardens. A mid-twentieth century silhouette – sweetheart necklines, soft shoulders and overblown skirts – is complimented by a hyper-feminine colour palette in shades of pink, from albion to fuchsia rose, and red, punctuated by classic black. Asymmetric hand-draped silks and exploded bows nod to the haute couture tradition finishing an audaciously romantic look.

Look 26
A dress with off-the-shoulder drape and a tiered skirt in washed silk organza dip-dyed albion pink and black.

look 27
A double-layered tuxedo jacket in black wool silk with a wrapped bow peplum in albion pink micro-faille and cigarette trousers in black wool silk with a black satin tuxedo stripe.

 
 

look 28 
An oyster ruffle dress with a high neck and scalloped back in washed organza dip-dyed albion  pink and black.

 
 

look 29 
An asymmetric, floor-length dress with an exploded skirt volume in washed calico silk organza with sketchbook hand embroidery over a skeletal corset in nude silk tulle. The embroidery was inspired by drawings in the notebooks of the Alexander McQueen design studio teams.

Cara Delevigne And Olivier Rousteing Team Up For Puma x Balmain Campaign Directed By Philippa Price

An unlikely partnership takes the form of two limited-edition capsule collections, both designed by BALMAIN’s Creative Director Olivier Rousteing and his good friend and muse, the English actor and model Cara Delevingne. This is PUMA’s first-ever collection with Cara Delevingne, who has been working with PUMA since 2016. Standing at the intersection of sport and fashion, this new collection features pieces inspired by traditional boxing gear that are infused with Parisian couture. Bra tops, boxing shorts, and sneakers are elevated with a stark color palette, hits of gold, and design elements straight out of BALMAIN’s atelier.

The campaign for the line, directed by Philippa Price and produced by MAAVVEN is a boxing-inspired, interactive campaign starring Delevingne. The campaign is not a literal interpretation of boxing but a dynamic and visceral interpretation of the timeless tale of human connection, identity, tragedy and triumph, love and hate, and the universal duality of “the fight.” In addition to Delevingne, the cast is rounded out by an incredible group of “real people,” who personify this idea of the fight.

In addition to the campaign, Price produced the live launch event, which took place here at Milk Studios in Los Angeles.

"Translating the campaign into the show concept was a lot of fun. We wanted the whole event to feel like a fight club. I worked with Jasmine Albuquerque (who also did all the choreography for the campaign) to create a 20 minute performance piece that evokes the duality of emotions behind any fight, whether it be physical or emotional—anger vs. empathy, defeat vs. perseverance, endurance, truth, forgiveness, and most importantly, love. Love for the self and love for all humans.” -Philippa Price

Concept 005: Read Our Interview Of Union Los Angeles Founder Chris Gibbs & Nordstrom Men's Sam Lobban On Their Recent Collaboration

Founded in 1989, Union’s history first started in New York’s Soho with the gracious ambition of giving a space to young, local designers on their way to recognition. The Los Angeles shop followed a few years later and strived to maintain the same principle born thirty years ago: embracing the creativity of fresh designers within the city while being inspired by trends coming from Japan and the UK. Union Los Angeles has now become one of LA’s prime destinations for men's contemporary fashion and streetwear. Earlier this month, Chris Gibbs, who used to work at the original NYC shop and is now the owner and operator behind Union LA, announced Union’s first ever collaboration with a national retailer: Nordstrom. Click here to read more.

A Paris Fashion Week Diary From The Spring Summer 2019 Collections

photographs by Flo Kohl