Julien Fournie came to the high fashion from.. medicine.Obeying the parents, who didn’t consider cloths styling as a serious occupationfor a young man of good family, the future designer of haute couture spent 6years in the Academy of Medicine, having thoroughly studied the anatomy of thehuman body. A medical past mixed with his own fantasies of the scorched southof France, a birthplace of one of his idols – Christian Lacroix, formed thebasis of the style of the young French fashion house, each new collection of whichis a hidden public manifesto. Julien is sure that designers, along withpoliticians and show-business stars, are able to influence public opinion.Urban neon colors, materials of the future, zippers imitating incisions on askin are combined by couture with feminine lines of the cut that accentuate thecurves of the waist and hips. The weapon of the Fournier’s heroine is herfragility.
Photo credits: Julien Fournie
Besides enjoying the art of high fashion, the fashion show of Franck Sorbier is worth going to also to get acquainted with the intellectualelite of the French culture, fully represented among his guests. Shows-installationsby Sorbier differ with their creative originality, and his clothes, for whichthe designer sometimes uses the most incredible materials from all over theworld, are getting close to museum exhibits.
In his new collection Franck Sorbier combines hightechnology of the future with hand sewing techniques of haute couture. In thismodern XXI century fairytale princess orders his father a dress, which”cannot be sewn.” For the execution of the caprice of her heroine,the designer had to recourse to the usage of 3D technology. Digital images areprojected on a white dress, painting it in the most incredible detailedcollages and colors, each time “dressing” the model in a new way.
Photo credits: Frank Sorbier
Brazilian Gustavo Lins, working under the Atelier Gustavolins brand, identifies himself more as a geometer rather than a “justclothes designer.” At the core of his collection is a masculine trousersuit, which the designer plays with, adapting the cut for the femalesilhouette. In the fall-winter collection Lins returns to the theme of the mostnation-wide Brazilian sport – football. Football, according to Gustavo, goes beyondbanal entertainment, becoming a whole concept, bordering on art. Why not, saysthe designer, combine incongruous: a soccer-ball and a Parisian haute couture?
In addition to the football theme, the collection shows theresults of joint efforts of the fashion house with several French appliedmasters of haute couture. The black on black embroidery, which according to thedesigner creates the effect of sculptural volume, is made by a famous studioLesage. While the original decorations are produced in collaboration withSèvres porcelain manufactory (Manufacture national de Sèvres) and jewelry houseGoossens, founded in the middle of the last century.
Photo credits: Atelier Gustavolins