The neon and nightlife of Balenciaga's SS25 collection

For his new Balenciaga SS25 collection, presented today with a show in Shanghai, Demna played with many different elements. The silhouette would be the first: completely distorted and manipulated with the opening looks inspired by the skyscrapers of Pudong, the "modern" district of Shanghai; with boots featuring mile-high platforms and long coats that disguise their actual height; then extremely tight or flared depending on the outfit, slightly off-kilter with the coats (in some cases heavy and wide enough to cover the body in a cocoon) tied a little below the normal waistline; and finally the cubical and exaggerated volumes of the final evening dresses. Another perhaps debatable secondary theme of the show were winks to the 80s, seen both in the general vibe from Blade Runner and in the frequent presence of raised collars of polos and coats, but also in the hairstyles and earrings of many of the models and especially in the series of silk dresses with exaggerated shoulders whose patterns seemed to have returned precisely from that decade. The same mega-platform boots recalled those so loved by the goth subculture of the time.

Elsewhere, the collection's looks were sprinkled with very "meta" details such as bags with the logo off-centered to the right to make it more visible when worn, or pants illusionistically dropped to reveal a suit underneath (this is a trick that Demna has shown to love in past collections), but also shoebox-shaped bags, hyper-fitted dresses that take the form of shirts, and outerwear-shaped bags, like a puffer jacket, a trench coat, and even a boiler suit, the handle of which is hidden under the collar making them look like jackets hung on one shoulder. There were also trompe l’oeil knitted motifs that reproduced crocodile or fox skin,integrated into silk garments. A standout piece was a full digital print bodysuit playing with the trompe l’oeil effect, giving the illusion of wearing pantashoes, jeans, and a shirt all at once. This approach extended to outerwear with faux fur coats and trenches cut into elegant and contemporary jackets. Among these, stood out the cocoon bolero in synthetic fur paired with a long sparkling evening dress. The collection also ventured into experimental semi-couture and couture dresses: an evening dress was made of assembled travel bags, while another took the form of a bell-shaped vinyl dress with a bow. A Tyvek paper dress offered a unique interpretation of disposable materials, and a golden packaging paper dress shimmered with festive exuberance. Black velvet was ingeniously used to create a dress that resembled a jewelry display, and another dress was made from a clothes hanger cover. One of the most intriguing pieces was a dress made of collected pink plastic bags, each over a decade old. These bags were meticulously hand-cut into strips and perforated with thread to create a feather-like effect - a tribute to Balenciaga's archive.

Another beautiful piece of "illusionism" were all the tops sewn in such a way that the front part of sweaters, polos, and shirts has both hems, front and back - a curious construction that Demna used to play with the layering of garments that are only seemingly everyday. The only concession to taste and simulation of wear and tear were the run-down tights worn by some models, but also the heeled sandals paired with white sports socks as well as the almost disheveled appearance of silk dresses from which drapes and long strips of fabric hang, disrupting their vaguely conservative shape. In addition to the stylistic world it is accustomed to frequent (and here we refer to sportswear, rave aesthetics, and the omnipresence of black), the feeling is that this season Demna has chosen to explore, describe, and rewrite certain commonplaces of "bon ton" clothing. He had done so in other seasons as well, but it seems like in this one he has a very clear idea of the kind of grand dames he was deconstructing. If the sun of Los Angeles had perhaps appeared too harsh a light for Demna, with the comment he made (directly or indirectly) about the superficiality of rich Americans who do yoga and gulp down Erewhon smoothies; the rain of Shanghai, with its night and its neon lights, has created a more nuanced and scenic dimension in which to inhabit the nocturnal creatures, the party animals, and the icy socialites of Balenciaga.