Glamour and sexiness have long been the go-to concepts for Balmain. Ultra-tailored, ultra-short, ultra-architectural, these dresses imagined by Olivier Rousteing are today finding a particular echo in the lyrics of Nirvana. “The Balmain woman is a modern day adventurer,” Olivier Rousteing highlighted backstage. Thus it was to the sounds of I Feel Stupid by Nirvana, the cult classic 90s grunge band, that the Balmain army took to the catwalk. “The music and spirit of rebellion of this legendary band still find an echo in me today,” Olivier Rousteing stated. “There’s something liberating in being able to get outside the box, to go where no one is expecting. This same vital energy inhabits strong women of today.”
These triumphant female warriors are embarking on a road trip around the world – to the Amazon, to the Serengeti in Tanzania… With long thigh boots and an origami leather patchwork skirt, the key piece in this Fall/Winter 2017-2018 collection is overflowing with stylistic references as wild as they are fascinating. Sporting gold chains sprinkled with garnet pearls or matte gold sequins, sparkling velvet, coats of arms, and other motifs – maximalism brings it towards a palette composed with notes of tribalism. With alligator leather mini dresses cut right to the body, the silhouette perfectly curved, they seem ready to attack the urban jungle in pieces composed of precious plaiting. One thing is sure: Olivier Rousteing’s Balmain women don’t take orders from anyone. This is a gleaming femininity with flamboyance to boot, and it’s contagious.
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