The Zimmerman sisters join Christine Centenera in Paris to toast her first issue of Vogue Australia
The fashion capital’s style set celebrated incoming editor-in-chief Christine Centenera’s launch issue after Zimmermann’s second catwalk triumph in the City of Light.
Following Nicky and Simone Zimmermann’s sophomore show in Paris, Vogue Australia’s new editor-in-chief Christine Centenera toasted her March issue featuring Hailey Bieber with a star-studded soiree hosted by British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful at the Ritz Paris.
“Vogue Australia is so well respected, it is wonderful to see so many Australian fashion talents here in Paris to celebrate with us,” said Centenera.
The Zimmermanns joined Aussies Erica Packer, Akon Changkou, Dion Lee and Cat McNeil, along with Vogue’s global chief content officer Anna Wintour, Alicia Vikander, Christopher Kane and Mario Sorrenti for the intimate cocktail party at the Parisian institution.
“I’m so proud to have Hailey Bieber on the cover of my first issue as editor-in-chief,” Centenera added, “she is a great woman; warm, funny, driven and inspiring,” Bieber, meanwhile, sent her best wishes from Anguilla where she is shooting for her beauty brand Rhode.
The Zimmermann’s on schedule show on the penultimate day of Paris Fashion Week straddled influences of home and the French capital through the work of Australian artist Rupert Bunny [1864 – 1947] who was a fixture of the fin-de-siècle (turn of the century) Parisian art scene.
“I was drawn to his use of colour and the romanticism of his work. The gentle and dreamy lifestyle scenes,” explains Nicky Zimmermann of her ethereal gowns that featured a selection of Bunny prints provided by the National Gallery of Victoria. “There is a glow, warmth and optimism to his work that is really appealing to me and coincidentally he had a strong connection with Paris.”
The autumn/winter collection steered away from the reductionist rigour that has otherwise dominated the season’s runways, instead pairing these diaphanous dresses with French lace and blue denim.
Zimmermann arrived in Paris a week ahead of the show to start work on the next season with her Paris-based design team. “There’s definitely an added pressure,” she says of showing in the style capital, “but I think it’s good to keep it simple and work in a way that we’re comfortable with and to do it our own way.
“One of the exciting steps for us here in Paris is the development of a second design studio. It gives me and the team some flexibility of how we work creatively and gives us the chance to collaborate on some of our newer categories, particularly around our accessories.”
Stepping up their international expansion plans, the brand opened a new flagship store in Barcelona last week, with Hawaii scheduled for before Easter. At home, the pair are rebuilding their Melbourne CBD store, which will become their largest store in Australia.
Elsewhere in Paris, Stella McCartney, who was awarded a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) by His Majesty King Charles III last month, further advanced her commitment to sustainable fashion. The designer presented her vegan autumn/winter show within a sand-strewn arena at the Manège de l’École Militaire alongside seven white Camargue horses, which sparked controversy on social media prompting the house to issue a statement that horse whisperer Jean-Francois Pignon‘s animals were trained in a “cruelty free way to acknowledge his body movements”.
“There’s so much leather and feather and fur on the runway, especially in winter, and I just wanted to show that you can do it in a different way. You don’t have to kill anything,” Stella McCartney said post show. Taking inspiration from the equestrian wardrobe the collection revived the horse motif from her spring/summer 2001 Chloé show amid a strong line-up of checked tailoring and faux fur outerwear.
Over at Louis Vuitton, Nicolas Ghesquière presented an ode to Parisian chic with a respectfully wearable collection of elegant tailoring (again featuring the season’s trending check) with an emphasis on strong necklines from oversized collars to bold yokes. These were timeless clothing archetypes executed with a Ghesquière twist and designed for real women – another common thread that has reverberated throughout the autumn/winter ’23/’24 season.
To join the conversation, please log in. Don't have an account? Register
Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout