PFW SS26: Balenciaga explored the house_s original silhouettes

As recently reported by FashionUnited_ a major highlight of this season_s Paris Fashion Week was Pierpaolo Piccioli_s debut as the new creative director of Balenciaga. After the previous designer_ Demna_s_ inclusion of streetwear_ Piccioli took a different direction_ explicitly referencing Cristóbal Balenciaga_s original forms_ (sack dresses_ balloon shapes_ cocoon silhouettes_) as starting points_ to eliminate constricted garments while retaining a sophisticated chic.

For example_ look 34 was a magenta-colored off-the-shoulder dress in a silk/wool blend_ with a voluminous_ cocoon-like silhouette_ creating a strong architectural shape around the torso. The neckline sat wide across the shoulders_ and the hemline was cut short.

However_ the back of the dress told quite a different story_ based on the Balenciaga _peacock train_ first shown in 1958_ it had a dramatic_ trailing panel that created a fluid_ cape-like effect as the model walked along the runway.

Two of the accessories paired with look 34 referenced a former Balenciaga design director_ Nicolas Ghesquière. The high-crowned riding hat echoed one that Ghesquière showed in his 2008 collection for the House;

…while the handbag could be traced back to the original _City_ bag Ghesquière released in 2001.

Finally_ velvet platform flip flops finished the look.

As we saw in Milan_ at Prada SS26_ Piccioli emphasized a sense of weightlessness with garments that allowed space. It was just as Cristóbal Balenciaga had imagined when he designed his sack dress in 1957 as a way of freeing women from the constricted silhouettes.