Unveiled yesterday, Anthony Vacarello’s bold new collection for the Parisian house explores a balance of “cheesy and luxurious”
Swapping last season’s sand dunes for frostier – yet equally epic – climes, Saint Laurent’s Autumn/Winter 2021 collection was unveiled yesterday via a dramatic short film. The clip was shot in a ferocious wintry landscape, in a location that artistic director Anthony Vaccarello has chosen to keep secret.
Models charged warrior-like through this “hostile” setting wearing Vacarello’s latest designs, which stood out against the dark rocky terrain in vibrant hues of violet, green, cobalt blue, hot pink, and rave-ready silver and gold. Navigating the space between “cheesy and luxurious”, the collection was apparently inspired by the chaotic glamour of cult 1990s musician Peaches – mining what the show’s notes describe as the Fuck The Pain Away singer’s “glitzy imperfections.”
This balance between high and low was seen in a masterful clash of tight metallic bodysuits, chunky “fantasy” jewellery, extreme thigh high boots, and silver hotpants, which were thrown together with elegant silhouettes plucked from the 1960s – specifically those from the house’s archives, crafted by Yves Saint Laurent – which were hewn in vibrant tweeds and hemmed in lashings of fax fur. “It’s the shapes of the 60s with the colours of the 80s,” Vaccarello told Vogue of the collection’s playful palette.
The vibrant outing exemplifies Vacarello’s eye to move Saint Laurent into a more “light and playful” direction, while staying true to the house’s established codes of quintessential French glamour. “Serious matters push you to take other things less seriously,” the designer said of the collection, in light of these strange times. “Finding the balance while staying on the edge is a sophisticated aptitude.”
Watch Saint Laurent’s Autumn/Winter 2021 show below.
