Viktor&Rolf show off shoulder pads at Paris Fashion Week 2022

A mix between Uncle Fester and a vampire, dramatic shoulder pads have stolen the show at Paris Couture Fashion Week.

Dolly Parton famously declared the higher the hair the closer to God but Dutch fashion designers Viktor&Rolf have decided to replace hair with shoulder pads.

The designers showed off their latest creations at Paris Couture Fashion Week, with garments containing hunched and high-padded shoulders, which swallowed up the models’ necks in a nod to Uncle Fester from The Addams Family.

A Viktor & Rolf creation for the spring-summer 2022 haute couture collection fashion show in Paris. Picture: AFP

Victor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren said they were inspired by vampire Nosferatu from the 1922 German silent film because it’s a powerful symbol of fear and change in society.

Keeping with the old-Hollywood Dracula theme, the show contained horror music, ghoulish makeup and the models wore long talons.

Another Viktor & Rolf look. Picture: AFP

Ghoulish makeup was a feature of the show.

The dramatic look once again has brought exaggerated shoulders pads back into the spotlight.

The clothes can also be worn without the shoulder pads.

Talon-style nails added to the impact. Picture: AFP

The fashion trend is synonymous with the 1980s and marked women’s increased presence in the board room. Because of this, they’ve often been seem as a power symbol.

But for those who prefer their power to be little less suffocating around the neck, Horsting explained you could wear the outfits without the dramatic shoulder.

Dutch fashion design duo Viktor & Rolf. Picture: Aaron Francis

The runway spectacle of the show is in stark contrast to the past two years, where the parades were paused because of Covid and instead delivered online.

However this isn’t the first time the designers creations have gone viral.

In 2019 they sent models down the runway with frothy tulle gowns graffitied with bold statements like, “Sorry I’m late, I didn’t want to come” which were then seen on the likes of celebrities like Kylie Jenner.