Balenciaga presented its Fall 22 collection this week in the form of a message from the past about what could have been and never was.
Titled “The Lost Tape” the presentation recalled a time when clothing was alive with raw ideas, before it was bound by trends. With key themes of “anti-fashion”, deconstruction, and monochromatic minimalism running throughout.
Inspired by the people and things that defined the late nineties era The Lost Tape is a film imagined by Creative Director Demna and directed by Harmony Korine that fills a gap from Balenciaga’s forgotten years.
The collection focuses on the raver and post-grunge era, where silhouettes are pushed to their limits. Proportions are played with, creating new shapes and evolving others. The Balenciaga signature Basque waist jacket returns as well as the classic tracksuit.
Front-to-back pieces are new interpretations of classic suiting worn in an unusual way. Tweed dresses are designed in a new way with re-engineered constructions that allows them to become tailored.
Balenciaga icons are reimagined for modern comfort: A bell-shaped parka is affixed with a detachable travel pillow at the neck. Conventional pieces are twisted to create a cross between a bathrobe and a trench coat. Vintage slip dresses are disassembled and pieced back together. Five-pocket jeans are cut up to create a three-piece silhouette that can be worn as a miniskirt, pants, or XL thigh-high boots.
Fluid tailoring gives a deconstructed suit an unlined raglan sleeve, in the collection’s Belgian Avant-goth tones. Relaxed, low-rise trousers and jeans show an underwear waistband above a double-B belt for an elongated look. A Couture-like bell-shaped puffer’s detachable bow can be used as a scarf. Wrap closures use DIY ways of fastening, like oversized safety pins. The show’s first look seals the body from the neck down with a gloved top and the first pair of five-pocket Pantaboots.
When it comes to footwear, new styles were introduced including “The Excavator” a cowboy boot-inspired thigh-high wader and “The Kensington”, a unisex square-toed ballerina flat, worn like a slipper.“The Falkon Boot” has a wide, pliable upper, giving its silhouette additional volume.
In bags, “The Lindsay Bag” reinterprets a Balenciaga classic, inspired by a buckled 90s purse. The Waist Bag is belted and cinched around its middle. The Metro Bag, a front flap purse, is made with knitted cords of faux leather and a massive metal chain. The Emo Bag combines grommeted fetish straps, extra hardware, and super stone-washed leather.
A commitment to responsible production continues, represented this season with 89.6% certified sustainable plain and printed ready-to-wear fabrics as well as pieces of upcycled leather used in garments and accessories.
