Ariane Bigot: “A growing desire for something tangible, for the feel of materials” The - Première Vision Paris
Ariane Bigot, Associate Fashion Director of Première Vision
How is fashion moving forward in this unprecedented context? How to better anticipate the spring-summer 2022 trends? Ariane Bigot points to some early directions identified by the Première Vision fashion team.
In these totally uncharted times, are we also seeing a shake-up in fashion trends ?
The industry is clearly in turmoil, yet certain underlying issues seem to be strengthening. The whole matter of eco-responsibility is increasingly present, and is helping to speed the many changes that are already underway. Some industry players are using the current business slowdown to gain some distance, and join in questioning fashion’s accelerating time frames, and the offer’s excessive uniformity. Taking full stock of these issues helps us envision new directions, and ways to break with or improve certain rationales. And in a general sense, it lets us respond in a new way to the desire for fashion, which seems to have remained intact and even strengthened by the frustration of recent months.
How does the spring/summer 22 season translate this desire?
Fashions seek to be strong, cheerful – to get away from the grim mood around us, and also break away from archetypical reinterpretations. The new proposals are fresher, bolder, and really celebrate all the faces of seductive appeal. On the one hand, a sexy exuberance embraces a forthright, hyper-colorful approach and exaggerated texture. On the other we see a more discreet, more intimate sensual direction, to meet a renewed desire for materials and handles. A pleasing tactile experience will be a very distinguishing factor, a strong added-value, a sign of innate quality. These things have often been disconnected from the desire for fashion. But this season, desire operates on every level – visual, sensory and emotional.
This change is also highly attributable to all the innovations that have been introduced.
This appreciation of materials has certainly been assisted by more successful eco-responsible blends. There’s greater expertise in how products are elaborated and used. In the leather sector, advances in vegetable tanning are generating new handles, new feels. There is a whole new enjoyment of materials thanks to the progress being made by these so-called virtuous materials, and this is true across the board in the industry.
Do colors also underscore this yearning for something new?
They especially convey a desire for light, interpreted in solarized versions, graduated and fresh shades that function almost as halos. We see softer pale hues, with natural linen and hemp tones, and warm, refined neutrals. An urge for vitality is conveyed by natural colors with a heightened intensity: more artificial greens, nature sublimated by intense oranges and pinks. Finally, the digital universe also finds expression, with pastel shades where mauves, violets, and pinkish tones oscillate from matt to shiny.
What about silhouettes – are these new materials right for all kinds of styles and looks?
The season’s materials allow shapes that meet the desire for comfort and lightness while retaining a density conducive to chic, refined styles. Softness slips into tailored, casual and sports apparel, with softened, more sophisticated silhouettes. There’s an effort to be revealing in a discreet way; and where we do find transparency, it is worked in delicate layers. Stylistically, fashions shed anything overcomplicated to write a new story, one that’s elegant, light and full of fantasy, for a vibrant approach to a new era.
*To find out more, watch the replay of the Digital Talk “The way it feels”,
With Ariane Bigot et Carine Montarras, from Première Vision fashion team
You can also register to the free PV fashion seminars :
Season Trend Tasting and Color Trend Tasting