PARIS (Reuters) – From leather corsages to frilly dresses, the Italian brand Valentino presented on Sunday a series of entirely black looks in Paris while the fashion houses continued their parades despite the coronavirus epidemic which has distanced some participants.
A model presents a creation by designer Pierpaolo Piccioli as part of his women’s ready-to-wear Fall / Winter 2020/21 fashion show for the fashion house Valentino during Paris Fashion Week in Paris, France, March 1, 2020 REUTERS / Piroschka van de Wouw
Paris Fashion Week will run until March 3, as big brands like Chanel and Louis Vuitton from LVMH have not yet put their displays on.
At Valentino, another highlight of the calendar, the models strut around in a series of black outfits, some adorned with sequins, others with more delicate lace.
The dark looks were offset by splashes of fiery red here and there – from a ruffled clutch to long gloves – while designer Pierpaolo Piccioli ended the show with more airy tones, including shiny knit dresses.
Some workers at the scene wore black masks when they were finishing the seats and getting ready before the guests arrived.
The epidemic of fast-spread coronavirus, originating in China, pushed the organizers of certain big world events to cancel by precaution, and France put on Saturday a temporary ban on the gatherings of more than 5000 people.
Fashion shows tend to be smaller, with several hundred people at most.
Many Chinese fashion journalists and bloggers were absent from Paris this season due to travel restrictions, however, while French brand Agnes b. Friday became the first non-Chinese fashion house to cancel a presentation due to the epidemic.
Earlier Sunday, Japanese designer Issey Miyake turned a schoolyard into a runway for her fashion show, where models sported striking black and white styles that made them feel like they were cutting out of paper.
The fall-winter collection also offers futuristic looks with a folded jumpsuit evoking Japanese origami.
The show ended with a riot of colors in a choreographed parade of male and female models wearing asexual clothes, with sleeved sweaters tied to each other to form a long human chain.
“Connecting people’s knits is like forming a chain between the past, the present and the future,” designer Satoshi Kondo told Reuters after the show. “I wanted to show the positivity of people to be connected … and I wanted to express diversity through different fabrics and colors.”
Report by Laetitia Volga and Sarah White; Editing by Ros Russell