Once upon a time in fashion

Great fashion moments in Emily in Paris

Emily in Paris. A show which will probably make you rethink your closet from a so-called basic and minimal one to a multicoloured, crazy and over-embellished one. Or maybe discourage you from combining too many pieces, patterns and colours as Emily, the main character of this light-hearted show, does. Her closet is a huge topic of discussion , however, we are not here to analyse her clothing style (at least not right now) but to look at two scenes referencing two iconic fashion shows.

The show Emily in Paris was released during October's Paris fashion week 2020 and according to Forbes (Forbes, Travis Bean, https://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbean/2020/10/24/the-10-most-popular-shows-on-netflix-so-far-in-october/) was the #1 show streaming on Netflix that month. I must admit, it was a welcome distraction from all the chaos of 2020! The too-good-to-be-true scenarios, Lily Collins as the main character, flawless streets of Paris, quite silly plot, comic, stereotypical scenes and the contrast between wacky American society and the polished French, has truly made Emily in Paris an addictive Netflix series. The competition between the two fashion worlds (American and French) is depicted through the American brand Grey Space and ‘legendary’ fictional French designer Pierre Cadault. The battle itself reflects on the contemporary struggles happening in the Parisian design houses.

During the series there are two immense fashion moments which pay homage to the Viktor & Rolf SS 2019 collection, and the iconic idea of Alexander McQueen's SS 1999 dress being sprayed by robots as the model twirls around on a pedestal.

Viktor & Rolf SS 2019

Firstly let’s look at the scene in the 10th episode , where Emilly has organised a fashion show for the fabulous designer Pierre Cadault. Eight great-looking models getting out of a garbage truck , wearing the glorious artwork designed by Pierre Cadault. Voluminous gowns with shocking sayings like “Fashion is trash”, “Pierre who?” or “Basic” on them seems like a really great way to prove to Grey Space which nation truly owns the fashion world.

But wait … we actually might have seen something similar before!

This great scene was in fact inspired by the real Viktor & Rolf SS 2019 show titled “Fashion Statements”. In spite of the last season (SS 2018) dominating with the colour whiter, the designers used a much brighter colour palette this time around. And when it comes to colours, it is pretty interesting how they blended the irony of the rather rude and eccentric sayings with the dreamy, sugar-sweet designs. Pyramid-shaped dresses with puffed and dramatic sleeves symbolized the “world we live in now”. Outfits standing out like a sore thumb, with statements like “I am my own muse”, “Less is more” (ironically written on the most extravagant piece), or “No photos please” represented a visual metaphor for the busy and virtual world we are living in. It is said that this collection was more of a message than a fashion.

The CUT, Viktor & Rolf spring 2019 Couture. Photo: Isidore Montag/Imaxtree

Alexander McQueen SS 1999

For the second captivating fashion moment in this series we must go back to the 9th episode, where a charity auction and the design duo Grey Space contribute to Emily's daily troubles. The auction takes place in the Louvre, however, the model, who was supposed to wear a Pierre Cadault dress, couldn't get there , hence Emily has to be the model in the white dress. As soon as the dress is sold to Grey Space, two men come and spray it with dark paint as a publicity stunt. The scene was clearly inspired by the iconic runway show from Alexander McQueen and his Dress No. 13.

It can be said that Alexander McQueen didn’t just create fashion, but remarkable art. Dress No. 13 in his SS 2019 runway show was proof enough of this. Canadian supermodel Shalom Harlow was sprayed with black and neon yellow paint by two mechanical arms (typically used to paint cars) as she spins around on a pedestal and performs a graceful dance. Obviously Emily is not Shalom Harlow, however, she did an admirable job all the same.

Photo: Carole Bethuel/Netflix

Photo: Blog Met museum, Sølve Sundsbø

Altogether, I would say that Emily in Paris is worth watching because of the fashion references. For sure, the plot itself as well as the visual aesthetic cannot be considered realistic. In any case, Darren Star together with the cast created a lovely distraction from the demanding year.

Written by Adél

SOURCES

Emily in Paris, Netflix

https://www.netflix.com

Amy Vener: Viktor & Rolf Spring 2019 couture, Vogue

https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/spring-2019-couture/viktor-rolf

Video record - Couture daily: Alexander McQueen spring/summer 1999,

https://www.youtube.com/watch/v=ErE7O5NceGQ

Anit Nosková: SERIÁL EMILY IN PARIS: NÁVRAT DO BUDOUCNOSTI A MÓDNÍ POHLED ANIT, Elle

https://www.elle.cz/moda/serial-emily-paris-navrat-do-budoucnosti-modni-pohled-anit

Sarah Mower: Remembering the Potent Performance Art of Alexander McQueen’s Collection No. 13—20 Years Later, Vogue

https://www.vogue.com/article/alexander-mcqueen-no-13