‘Surreal’ Australian designer Christopher Esber marks new milestone in Paris
Australian fashion designer Christopher Esber has shown his sophomore show on the official schedule at Paris Fashion Week.
Australian fashion designer Christopher Esber has shown his sophomore show on the official schedule at Paris Fashion Week.
Only a handful of Australian designers have been invited by the governing body, Haute Couture et de la Mode, to show on-schedule, including Zimmermann and Colette Dinnigan.
On Friday he was also inaugurated into industry publication The Business of Fashion’s 500 list of fashion’s movers and shakers.
This follows his win of the prestigious ANDAM Grand Prize for fashion in June, where he took home the prestigious ANDAM Grand Prize for fashion in Paris overnight, scooping €300,000 and a mentorship with Anthony Vaccarello, the creative director of Saint Laurent.
All of this, he says, has felt a little “surreal.”
As part of the prize a dress from the designer’s autumn/winter ‘22 collection will be shown at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs for the forthcoming ANDAM 35th anniversary exhibition.
To see his work displayed in this way, he says, is a particularly rewarding moment for the brand.
“This style defined our signature Venus silhouette, which has gone on to become a key brand archetype,” he says of the dress that will be displayed.
“The metal structure dictates the drape, and how the open knit dress meanders and falls into the body. A special foil is applied to the clear sequins, which curl when treated with heat, and are woven to the knit, and then punched in-house at the textile atelier in Switzerland.”
“Because we’ll still be here in Paris post-show when it opens on Monday, I’m looking forward to attending as a team and take in the moment together.”
Following last year’s debut in Paris Esber says this time around it was a different experience.
“With our debut, everything was new to us and we were learning as we went, but we’ve been able to enjoy the process more this time,” he says.
“I was so energised arriving in Paris this week, and the collaboration in the studio and among the team has been extra motivating.”
Showing in Paris is part of the designer’s ambition to be a global brand, with a full-category offering.
“I had been dreaming of and building toward showing on the Paris Fashion Week calendar for a long time and it was a slow burn to arrive where we are today – so the privilege is not lost on me,” he says.
This season’s collection showcased the sensual and slinky designs with couture-like details that has won him fans from singer Dua Lipa to models such as Hailey Bieber and actor Greta Lee.
Highlights included intricately draped gowns in midnight and ice blue with metallic hardware and embellishments that almost resembled something precious found on the beach, precise tailoring and new silhouettes of froths of cloudlike silks and ostrich feathers that added a sense of lightness.
Paris Fashion Week continues until Tuesday next week with Hermes, Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Australian mega-brand Zimmermann still to show.
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