Runway Shows
The show as a form. The catwalk and the front row, the fashion weeks of Paris, Milan, London and New York, the sets and the spectacle, and the collections people still talk about.
Part of Fashion
22 moments in this segment.
- - Kenzo Opens Jungle Jap. 1970. Kenzo Takada opens "Jungle Jap" in Paris, first major Japanese designer to break into the French establishment. Bright prints, ethnic mashups; opened the door for Kawakubo, Yamamoto, Miyake a decade later.
- - Yohji Yamamoto Paris Debut. October 1981. Yohji Yamamoto shows alongside Kawakubo. Black, oversized, draped, anti-bodycon. Yamamoto's 1985 quote: "Black is humble and arrogant at the same time." The two together are widely credited with introducing "deconstruction" to Paris.
- - Thierry Mugler Spring 1984. 1984. Mugler's Spring 1984 collection, exaggerated shoulders, wasp waists, science-fiction silhouettes. The first major designer to stage shows as theatrical spectacles. Defined the 1980s power-femininity silhouette before Versace took it more is more.
- - Antwerp Six Debut at London Fashion Week. March 1986. Six Antwerp graduates, Ann Demeulemeester, Dirk Bikkembergs, Dries Van Noten, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Van Saene, Marina Yee, show in London. (Martin Margiela was a Belgian Antwerp Academy graduate of similar vintage but not formally one of the Six.) Defined Belgian deconstruction.
- - McQueen Bumster Trousers. McQueen's 1993 graduation collection, bumster trousers cut so low they revealed "the back's lowest curve." Pre-figured the early-2000s low-rise jean by a decade.
- - Naomi Campbell Falls - Vivienne Westwood. October 1993. Naomi Campbell falls on the Vivienne Westwood runway in 9-inch blue-leather mock-croc super-elevated heels. Photographed by every press photographer present. The defining "runway moment" of the supermodel era; the shoes are now in the V&A.
- - Naomi Falls - Vivienne Westwood Blue Heels. October 1993. Naomi Campbell falls on the Vivienne Westwood runway in the now-iconic blue-leather mock-croc super-elevated heels. Got up laughing; the most-replayed runway moment ever.
- - John Galliano Spring 1994 (Black Collection). October 1993. John Galliano, broke, shows his "Black" collection in Parisian princess Sao Schlumberger's abandoned mansion. 17 pieces, dirt floor, lined with old newspapers. Anna Wintour wears the moment to a Vogue editorial; lands Galliano the Givenchy job within months.
- - Alexander McQueen - Bumster Trousers. October 1993. Alexander McQueen's "Taxi Driver" graduation collection at Central Saint Martins. The bumster trousers, extreme-low-rise, became his signature. Isabella Blow buys the entire collection for £5,000.
- - Mugler - 20th Anniversary Show. January 1995. Thierry Mugler's 20th-anniversary show, Tippi Hedren, Diana Ross, Naomi Campbell, James Brown all on the runway. The first true "fashion as theatre" mega-spectacle; widely cited as the most maximalist runway show ever staged.
- - McQueen - No. 13 (Spray-Paint Dress). September 1999. McQueen's Spring/Summer 1999 "No. 13" finale: Shalom Harlow in a white strapless dress, twirling on a turntable while two industrial robots spray-paint her. One of the most cinematic moments in runway history; widely cited as the show that defined the late-1990s avant-garde.
- - McQueen Spray-Paint Dress. McQueen's S/S 1999 finale, Shalom Harlow's white strapless dress sprayed by two industrial robots. One of the most cinematic single moments in runway history.
- - McQueen No. 13 - Shalom Harlow Spray-Paint. September 1999. McQueen's Spring/Summer 1999 finale, Shalom Harlow on a turntable, two robots spraying her white dress black and yellow. The most cinematic single runway moment of the 1990s.
- - Galliano - Dior Spring 2007 Couture. January 2007. John Galliano's Madame Butterfly couture collection for Dior. Universally voted one of the greatest single haute couture shows of the 2000s; the show that defined Galliano-era Dior at its peak.
- - Lady Gaga "Bad Romance" Debut During McQueen Show. October 6, 2009. Lady Gaga released "Bad Romance" as the soundtrack for McQueen's Plato's Atlantis runway. First major designer to live-stream a show. The Armadillo boot becomes the most-photographed shoe of the year.
- - McQueen - Plato's Atlantis. October 2009 (S/S 2010). McQueen's final completed collection. Iridescent reptilian prints, the Armadillo boot. Live-streamed (first major fashion show to do so) when Lady Gaga released "Bad Romance" during the show. McQueen died February 11, 2010.
- - Yeezy Season 1 at Madison Square Garden. February 12, 2015. Kanye West's Yeezy Season 1 streamed live to 42 cinemas globally. The first widely-anticipated streetwear show, the Yeezy Boost 350 reveal. Defined the late-2010s celebrity-designer template.
- - Rick Owens - Human Backpacks Show. October 2015 (S/S 2016). Rick Owens' "Cyclops" show, models carry other models on their backs/shoulders. The most-discussed Owens show; framed conversation about womanhood, support, weight. One of the most-photographed runway sets of the decade.
- - Virgil Abloh - Louis Vuitton Menswear. March 26, 2018. Virgil Abloh's LV menswear debut. First Black artistic director at a French luxury maison. The Spring 2019 rainbow runway show was the cultural moment of that fashion week. Died November 28, 2021 at 41 from a rare cancer.
- - Virgil's Rainbow LV Show. Virgil Abloh's March 2018 LV menswear debut, rainbow runway in Palais-Royal, the most-photographed runway moment of 2018. Marked the first Black artistic director at a French luxury maison.
- - Balenciaga Mud Show - Spring 2023. October 2022. Demna's Balenciaga Spring 2023 show, models trudge through ankle-deep mud in front of a graffitied set. Stage-set blew up on social media; defined late-Demna Balenciaga's commitment to spectacle-over-clothes.
- - Galliano Margiela Artisanal Spring 2024. January 25, 2024. John Galliano's Maison Margiela Artisanal Spring 2024, staged under a Paris bridge. Universally voted Best Show of the 2020s by Vogue, Business of Fashion, etc. The collection that brought Galliano back from his decade-long penance.
