POIRET FALL WINTER 2018 WOMEN’S COLLECTION – PARIS FASHION WEEK

In her first collection for the Maison Poiret, artistic director Yiqing Yin lays the foundation for a versatile wardrobe that makes room for playfulness, movement and personal expression. In her first collection for the Maison Poiret, artistic director Yiqing Yin lays the foundation for a versatile wardrobe that makes room for playfulness, movement and personal expression. In the spirit of Paul Poiret, who liberated women from the corset in the early 20th century, a complete wardrobe offering sets forth a sensitive philosophy of shape and cut.

In a reprisal of contemporary mix-and-match, these looks move from day into evening, here to there. Oversized silhouettes inherited from Paul Poiret offer the body freedom of movement. Rather than put herself on display, the Poiret woman prefers to play up mood and showcase a subtle sensuality brimming with paradox. Dresses and coats reprise the cocoon shape for which the founder was known.

Pristine shapes invite personal interpretation: belted or loose, or worn back to front, a dress may appear in iridescent green taffeta or jersey, yet produce completely different results. The palette also comes into play, with classic ivory, gray and black as well as canary yellow, shocking pink, scarlet, cerulean and sapphire blue, with touches of bronze green and rust, or almost acid gold on iridescent taffeta.

Oversized knits, shawl collars, new takes on harem pants and a coat in Greenland lambskin make a case for a loungewear spirit mingled with minimalist shapes enveloped in supple draping. A wrap jumpsuit, in jacquard or liquid silk, echoes an “infinite” skirt. House jacquards and prints complete the vision of a new luxury based on the intimate beauty of craftsmanship. A floral motif bends to the simplified lines of minimalist shapes that look as if they had been painted with sweeping brushstrokes.

Silkscreened on an orylag jacket or embroidered on a shirt, these graphics lend rhythm to the collection and reappear in irregular, embroidered details on a pencil skirt or pieces in jersey, right down to fastening details. In the spirit of an exquisite corpse, industrial-inspired jewels and heels evoke Paul Poiret’s clever mixes, like his renowned “robe minute” made of two simple rectangles.

Metallic leathers underscore a universe defined by the union of refinement and functionality. Like supple sculptures, bags reveal geometry of movement with pure shapes and a dynamic twist. As the looks’ final touch, they anchor the collection in an allure composed of contrasts, designed for the 21st century.

« Je souhaite faire de Poiret une maison narratrice de rencontres et d’émotions, le territoire d’un nouveau luxe contemporain placé sous le signe du dialogue avec son époque. Au cœur de mon projet figure une philosophie sensible du vêtement et des coupes, prolongeant le geste de Paul Poiret qui au début du XXe siècle, libérait le corps et l’esprit des femmes. »

Yiqing Yin