Balenciaga sparks controversy over art, commerce and the apocalypse

Designer Demna Gvasalia not only caught the attention of the fashion industry with his Balenciaga show in Paris, but also the minds of the art world.

In the fashion world, the conversation centered on musician Kanye West, who stormed the catwalk in a safety jacket to open the Spring/Summer 2023 show. Through a backdrop of mud and tar reminiscent of a coal mine or a mass grave, other models walked with bags reminiscent of stuffed animals taken on the run. In addition, gloomy techno tones that reminded some of funeral marches.

Even if Balenciaga’s creative director Gvasalia does not refer to the war in Ukraine in his comments on the fashion show, the association was obvious after his fashion show last season. Back in early March, just two weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine, models walked the Balenciaga catwalk in a snowstorm and Gvasalia also addressed his own experiences of war and displacement.

No to escapism

Gvasalia wants to see the mud backdrop and show as a metaphor for “digging for the truth and down-to-earthness”. In addition to the apocalyptic associations, the show also revolves around dress codes and identity. “I hate boxes and labels,” Gvasalia said in the show’s statement.

For example, he brought the image of men with baby bags (with dolls inside) to the catwalk. The silhouettes alternated between combative hoodies and extremely short pants, floor-length coats and pleated dresses with capes, looks somewhere between Matrix or high priests of a dark cult. The models trudged through the mud in chunky clogs, pointy pumps and platform boots. Accessories such as meandering floor-length scarves and wide girdles caught the eye.

Some in the fashion world, such as editors at Vogue, have thanked Gvasalia for continuing to address the heavy but timely issue, while other fashion houses are happily indulging in escapism this season, spreading optimism with bright, colorful colors while the palette at Balenciaga looked somber – with black, red and earthy colors.

“Sell perfume and handbags, no war.”

The art world saw the show a little more critically. Her attention to Balenciaga was drawn by the fact that the maker of the backdrop was Santiago Sierra – a fact that the fashion industry paid comparatively little attention to. The artist addresses social injustice in his work, so it is surprising at first glance that he is cooperating with a French luxury fashion house like Balenciaga.

“Sell perfume and handbags, no war. This is not much consolation for Ukrainians, nor for the citizens of Russia. It smells like exploitation,” wrote artist Maggie Mcgrath in a comment below an Instagram post by curator Klaus Biesenbach, which sparked a lively debate about the extent to which a luxury fashion house can make radical statements or address such serious issues as war.

“So he’s selling $5,000 clothes because he’s touched by Ukraine?” asks artist Thaddeus Strode. “They’ll even sell you our own demise as long as it’s marketed as a luxury,” replies another Instagrammer user.

Commerce, luxury and art

In fact, Gvasalia likes to play with the categories of commerce and luxury. His bag for the Vetements label, which took up the design of the much cheaper Ikea shopping bag, is well known. Recently, a worn sneaker at luxury prices caused controversy. This time, too, the fashion designer remains true to his theme and wonders to what extent mud-smeared clothing can be a luxury.

At second glance, the cooperation between Gvasalia and Sierra may not seem so surprising: both deal with the phenomena of capitalism, like to go to extremes and provoke. To highlight precarious working conditions, Sierra did just that, hiring workers to toil in a museum.

There are other parallels as well: Sierra described his work as an artist in museums as “that of an interior designer or organizer of exclusive events for the cultural elite.” Fashion shows could be seen in a similar way.

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