For his second collection at Saint Laurent, Anthony Vaccarello chose to once again show in the legendary French house's new and still-under-construction Rue de Bellechasse headquarters in the 7th arrondissement. The decision to move the label's head office back to the Left Bank preceded the arrival of the Italo-Belgian designer, but he has embraced this notion of paying homage to the house's creators, Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé, in a way that outdoes even the once reverential Hedi Slimane.
The open-air amphitheatre space, complete with a raw concrete runway and tiered marble stadium seating, may have been freezing — it was held in February in Paris, after all — but conversely, the brain-shaking club soundtrack and the sizzling clothes were anything but. Just like his choice of setting, Vaccarello managed to remix his ultra-luxe creations with a kind of brute romanticism, thereby conveying a message of tender toughness.
His vision of the Saint Laurent girl is a sexy, confident character who doesn't feel the need to flaunt herself. She is up for a party, of course, but — in direct defiance of Slimane — she is no party girl. Instead, Vaccarello's imaginary muse is a sultry enigma sheathed in mystery, someone who will reveal just enough of herself to capture your undivided attention but never so much as to seem vulgar.
The new Saint Laurent is all about attitude, and the best part is that Vaccarello is only just getting started.
