BALENCIAGA’S REVIVAL OF ITS COUTURE SALON IS GIVING THE BRAND’S FASHION SHOWS A NEW IDENTITY

25 jul 2022, for frame

Location

10 Av. George V, 75008 Paris, France

Design

Sub

Brand

Balenciaga

Last summer, Balenciaga restored its historic couture salon, which closed its doors in 1968. The brand’s latest presentation shows how it is finding modernity in tradition.

Key features

Balenciaga’s 51st couture collection – the second under the helm of artistic director Demna – was presented at the brand’s Paris flagship location at 10 Avenue George V. Redesigned by art director Niklas Bildstein Zaar and architect Andrea Faraguna of the Berlin-based studio Sub, the salon simulates the original Balenciaga interior, built in 1937. In the space, sculptural arabesques arch around doorways and mirrors are flat and dusty white, the same colour as the walls. Duchess curtains in the opening are the only decoration. Solid white floor lamps, white neoclassical sofas and gold-painted chairs emulate historical photographs, complemented by the interior’s artificial patina.

For the 51st show, a darkened glass box was inserted within the existing structure of the Haussmannian building. Lined with vacuum-formed aluminium, the highly technological vitrines protect the garments, which are sensitive to light. Their look plays with the futuristic aesthetic of an accessory from the collection – a face shield engineered by Mercedes-AMG F1 Applied Science. A motorized compression system allows the airtight doors to slide away and open with a single touch. The glass-box space now serves as the store’s haute couture department. 

Upstairs, the show's music was played on individual speakers held by runway models as they walked. Downstairs, those speakers become fashion objects – the limited-edition Balenciaga | Bang & Olufsen Speaker Bag. 

Frame’s take

In September of 2021, Balenciaga introduced the retail world to its Raw Architecture concept, a strategy that preserves and augments a site's existing context. The approach reacts to a location’s structures, exposing preexisting details of the building as part of the new design. At the same time, it reflects an effort to achieve a higher standard of sustainability. The brand’s modernization of its 20th-century salon follows this concept coherently, delivering a heritage atmosphere that creates an emotional bond with shoppers and enables in-house presentations. Collaborations with visionary industrial design brands like Mercedes-AMG F1 Applied Science and Bang & Olufsen lend another layer of technical craftsmanship and technological innovation.