Paris Haute Couture FW25: A Seasonof Farewells, Firsts, and Future Visions
From Demna’s Balenciaga farewell to Glenn Martens’ Margiela debut, this season was a theatrical pivot point, where fashion’s past, present, and future collided in couture splendor.
When art and fashion come together, they create a gallery of living artworks you can admire for hours. At Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week, that's the goal. Many see Haute Couture Week as when fashion takes bold risks and steals the spotlight with over-the-top flair. This year, the spotlight was on fashion houses Balenciaga (Demna's latest collection) and Maison Margiela (Glenn Martens' first collection). Setting the tone for the event: innovation and experimentation.
Maison Margiela – Glenn Martens’s Audacious Debut
Fashion from Antwerp to the Paris runway. After John Galliano's departure, Glenn Martens made his big debut at Maison Margiela. His long-awaited debut, Artisanal, was displayed in the atmospheric basement of Le Centquatre. The setting perfectly reflected the collection's theme, which could be described as faded glory and contemporary art. Walls were creased with paper collages, creating a highly immersive, subterranean environment.
The collection paid tribute to Martens himself and Margiela's signature style, a blend of Belgian precision. Gothic masks, draped textiles, patched leather, and denim adorned with oil painting motifs demonstrate deconstruction and revival. Margiela's art is prominently represented here. It's a modern collection featuring bold materials that Glenn uses to enhance his exceptional craftsmanship in his new role. He has already won the hearts of Maison Margiela fans, both old and new.
Image courtesy of Filippo Fior via Vogue
Balenciaga – Demna’s Emotional Swan Song
The end of a remarkable era. After over 10 years, Georgian fashion designer Demna Gvasalia unveiled his final collection at Balenciaga. He brought a fresh perspective to the Spanish fashion house, offering a different vision from that of Cristóbal Balenciaga in the early 20th century. With A-listers in the front row and on the runway, including Kim Kardashian, Lorde, Cardi B, Nicole Kidman, and others, he showcased his last haute couture collection at the Cristóbal Balenciaga apartment on Avenue George V, signaling respect for both himself and the designer.
We are accustomed to Demna's controversial and daring approach, but this extensive collection serves more as a tribute to couture and Balenciaga. It features debutante organza dresses, lace designs with corsets, seamless puffer jackets, and couture sneakers, blending refinement with streetwear sensibility. Despite mixed reactions—some calling it dull and stiff—many viewed this as a successful archival showcase, and Demna received high praise.
Despite controversy and polarizing reviews, his decade at Balenciaga is remembered as revolutionary: he transformed everyday objects (like Crocs and IKEA bags) into billion-dollar cultural symbols.
Image courtesy of Balenciaga via Vogue
Chanel – The Final In-House Collection
Chanel's July 8th show, held in a revitalized Salon d'Honneur (formerly the Grand Palais), marked the studio's final couture collection before Matthieu Blazy took over.
The aesthetic was an ode to practicality and natural beauty: bouclé tweeds, mohair, gold-sprayed wheat motifs, shimmering organza, and rhinestone veils. The ivory, beige, black, and mother-of-pearl winter palette evoked heathlands and romantic winter elegance.
Conversely, CR Fashion Book praised the sparkling fabrics as "future heirlooms" worthy of celebration. Chanel's finale is one of refinement and quiet grandeur, but it also leaves room for new creative leadership.
Image courtesy of Alessandro Lucioni via Vogue
Schiaparelli – Surrealist Symbols Reimagined
What makes Schiaparelli so unique is his unreal and futuristic vision of fashion. Daniel Roseberry loves to tell stories through his collections, and this is one of them. Schiaparelli kicked off the week on July 7th with a powerful reinvention of classic surrealism. The "Eyes Wide Open" collection featured trompe l'œil magic.
Highlights included satin suits, bias-cut dresses, and embroidered motifs of beating hearts, butterfly eyes, and dripping drops, each piece a visual story. The collection was astonishing not only for its wearable quality but also for its impact on haute couture. Roseberry's couture relies on surreal symbolism with a renewed purpose.
Image courtesy of Schiaparelli via Vogue
Iris van Herpen — Living Couture From the Deep
During Paris Haute Couture Week FW25, Iris van Herpen reminded the fashion world that innovation isn't always loud; sometimes it pulses gently, like life beneath the ocean's surface. On July 9th, Van Herpen presented "Sympoiesis," a collection less a fashion show and more an underwater dream where science, technology, and mythology blended into a stunning ecosystem.
One of the most talked-about pieces was a bioluminescent dress made of living algae, developed in partnership with biodesigners. The dress glowed with life, a futuristic couture moment that questioned what "living fashion" could mean in a world aware of sustainability. It wasn't just fashion as performance, it was fashion as an organism.
In a couture week filled with farewell parties and celebrity spectacles, Van Herpen's collection symbolized a subtle rebellion. This rebellion offered a different kind of future: not nostalgic, not streetwear-driven, but radically vibrant.
Image courtesy of Daniele Oberrauch via Vogue