Since the pandemic broke out, the fashion industry has been struggling to showcase its usual runways and shows without live events and red carpets. In the 2021 Haute Couture show in Paris, 10 designers gathered and made a comeback to show their new collection digitally or on a physical runway show. Fashion houses including Balenciaga, Iris van Herpen, Jean Paul Gaultier, Viktor & Rolf and breakthrough brand Pyer Moss revisited the significance of Haute Couture in the fashion industry.

Balenciaga made a striking entrance, returning to haute couture after 53 years. Demna Gvasalia picked up where Cristóbal Balenciaga left off and showcased a revolutionary collection. The designer maintained his creative outlook of the 21st century fashion with his atypical designs while fusing them with the fashion house’s heritage. Balenciaga showcased impeccably structured black tailored suits, embellished and exaggerated taffeta ball gowns, handmade denim jacket and jeans made out of American looms. It closed the show with a modernised two-piece wedding dress, leaving out embroideries and other details except delicate folds on the bottom of the train. Demna’s daring designs were nothing short of the use of colour, texture, silhouettes and drama. It is in every way a nod to the past works of Cristóbal Balenciaga.

Straying away from conventional fabrics, Iris van Herpen’s ethereal collection of gowns called Earthrise were nothing short of cutting edge and intricate. For the second time, the designer teamed up with ‘Parley For the Oceans’, an organisation that collects plastic waste from the ocean and upcycle them to create new materials. Five of the designs was realised in collaboration with various artists, including Rogan Brown who created hand and laser-cut sculptures resembling coral reefs and seaweed that almost resembled lacework, Casey Curran who created a sphere-inspired kinetic dress made from blue spheres in colour gradients to represent the ocean, as well as James Merry who created innovative outer space-like face jewellery.

Following Jean Paul Gaultier's resignation last year, the brand this year tapped Chitose Abe, founder and creative designer of Sacai, as guest designer to reimagine a collection for Jean Paul Gaultier Haute Couture. Their collaboration featured 31 eponymous looks that revolved around nautical uniforms and earthy tones and a colour palette that both designers referenced heavily on their past collections. The house also worked closely with Los Angeles-based tattoo artist Dr. Woo who provided intricate illustrations printed on jersey tops and pants. Chitose Abe’s mismatched yet striking construction techniques were infused into some of Gaultier’s signature corsets, the iconic conical bra and strapless cinch-waist trench dresses. The collection reimagined some pieces for JPG 94 collection, such as the vintage jean repurposed underskirt. 

As one of the most important American designers of his era, Kerby Jean-Raymond, designer of Pyer Moss, is the first Black American designer to be invited to Paris Haute Couture Week. He triumphantly showcased a collection on the erasure of Black culture. It was a theatrical narrative that paid homage to the 25 inventions created by Black inventors. The show was camp meets Moschino; everything was made large, such as a peanut butter jar dress, a floor-length hooded cape made of hair rollers and a pink lamp shades hat paired with a silky glittering beaded fringe dress. Jean-Raymond also gave a touch of poised and subdued elements – there were pastels, corseted silk jerseys and a light blue taffeta cut-out gown. What was once seen as mundane were whimsically made as sculptural forms. Once again Jean-Raymond's influential approach to his culture permeates in everything that he does. This collection communicated the reality of Black Americans and their ongoing fight for restitution.

Viktor & Rolf's tongue-in-cheek designs are always larger than life. This year, the designers released a collection based on the younger generations of royals and how they want to be a part of the norm. This collection was made upon the designers' realisation of how similar royalty was to the fashion industry with “keeping up with appearance.” Medieval brocades made appearance with jacquard patchworks and cloque pieces. The fur was made from raffia, imitating the appearance of real fur. The crowns were also made out of plastic while the jewels were made of paste. The use of unusual materials is a juxtaposition: that nothing is as it seems. Viktor & Rolf wanted to positively show that “You are your own creation.”