13 Apr 2022
Liberty. Equality. Posterity! Jean Paul Gaultier venerates the most iconic artworks from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries – ones that have become commonplace in the public eye since their creation. Oil paintings and nude figures are omnipresent in this new drop featuring The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo (1512), The Three Graces by Rubens (1639) and the iconic Birth of Venus by Botticelli (1485). This contrasting, pastel triptych in ode to the Renaissance is celebrated by photographer Elizaveta Porodina in a colorful visual campaign. Highlighted by an eclectic cast, this campaign blurs lines between gender whilst celebrating all shapes and forms. Art within art, for all and everyone.
And what inspired this new drop? The brand’s 1995 Spring/Summer runway show. This was when a young Jean-Paul Gaultier had Madonna (at the height of her fame) strutting nude under a mesh dress, her bust barely concealed by a spray of gold sequins. Now for 2022, this deliciously provocative overwear-underwear peep show has been given a new variation. Printed onto the Maison’s signature mesh, the three artworks spread out, revealing the skin, exalting the bodies of the painted subjects and the wearers. Art is at the heart of all creation in this irreverent style with an offbeat, pseudo-kitsch spirit.
Ever the star of the show, mesh again assumes its rightful place in this drop constructed entirely from the Maison’s trademark micro- tulle. Stretched out, tied in knots, concealing and appealing, the fabric reveals all body types and genders.
Long dresses show off their wide boat necklines in a nod to Gaultier’s signature marinieres. Tops with sharp-cut edges resemble fabrics that were hastily torn or slashed in a fit of creativity. Expressing multifunctional style, a skirt can be pulled up to the chest to act as a bandeau top – so Y2K. And a 3-in-1 scarf drapes artfully around the waist, onto the neck or over the head. The pieces are either decked out in the colours of the three iconic masterpieces or dipped in jet black and emblazoned with a garnet-coloured velvet “fragile” sign, calling to mind the crates used to transport museum and gallery works. Every garment appears to suggest that if we can’t see the art... we have become the art.
Available now: https://fashion.jeanpaulgaultier.com/
