Designer panned for bizarre balloon spectacle where models fell on runway at chaotic fashion week show
We want what they’re having.
In what has been dubbed “the most chaotic fashion show ever,” Paolina Russo’s Copenhagen fashion week runway shocked viewers with the bizarre addition of balloons and flailing models.
On Wednesday, the London-based brand debuted its sophomore collection, titled Cul-de-Sac — with the label’s notorious knitwear as the focal point — but served with a twist.
Instead of parading down the catwalk in an orderly procession, the models writhed, tumbled and entangled themselves in a bouquet of balloons shaped like animals and the sun meant to emulate “a modern take on monolithic carvings,” per Vogue.
“We wanted to make our own Neolithic-like cul-de-sac; our own Paolina Russo suburb,” Paolina Russo, the brand’s co-founder, told Vogue.
The clothes could barely be appreciated as a gaggle of models thrashed and collapsed on the runway, weaving between the Stonehenge-inspired menhirs.
Meanwhile, the ensembles that could be admired proceeded as usual, parading through the maze of standing stones on the circular runway.
The pre-historic theme — which contrasted the Y2K-esque knits, arm warmers and color palette, with pastel watercolor dye patterns and grungy, brown, beige and charcoal pieces — is a continuation from last season, which saw similar monoliths on the runway.
While the bizarre spectacle certainly brought the wow factor, it also elicited confusion and criticism from audiences at home who called it “absurd,” “ridiculous” and “embarrassing.”
“I guess I’m not vogue enough to understand whatever the hell this is,” wrote one Instagram user under Vogue’s reel of the show.
“How does this help me see the designs,” inquired another.
“When you have nothing much to show that you have to rely on stunts to keep the audience entertained,” snarked someone else.
“All the toys when Andy came in the room,” wrote one person referencing the Pixar flick “Toy Story.”
“What a mess,” another user simply put.
But the critics don’t seem to be deflating their fashion week high — the label, created by Russo and Lucile Guilmard, proudly boasted a stream of footage from the show on Instagram Stories.
This is their second showing at Copenhagen fashion week, following on the heels of the brand’s Zalando Visionary Award win.
“It’s always been our dream to travel with the brand; we don’t see it living in just one place,” Russo told Vogue, adding that the Danish hub is only their “first stop” in bringing their brand “all over the world.”
“It’s amazing that we can grow this community of like-minded people in Copenhagen.”
