Givenchy SS18: Clare Waight Keller's Confident Couture Debut

Showing her first couture collection on Tuesday night, Givenchy’s Clare Waight Keller delivered a bold and assured ensemble that provided a sartorial dialogue between darkness and light.

“I wanted to use the strength of tailoring, but in a feminine way,” said the first-time couturier of her sculptured and structured designs, that not only honored her predecessors at the Paris house, but showcased her own modern take on luxury dressing.

Givenchy SS18
Givenchy SS18
Givenchy SS18

A focus on menswear-inspired style, referencing Hubert Givenchy’s early work, produced some sharp-shouldered jackets and angular-shaped capelets atop nipped in waists. Crafted predominantly in black, these pieces also nodded to Riccardo Tisci, who produced the house’s last couture collection, with lace, jet beading and feather trim adding Gothic touches.

Givenchy SS18
Givenchy SS18
Givenchy SS18

But this darker mood was lightened by the elaborate eveningwear, including a clutch of silver dresses shimmering with crystal beads, inspired by the idea of moonlight catching the clothes, and an injection of color, most obviously evident in a rainbow-hued floor-sweeping skirt.

A solid first outing, Clare Waight Keller's vision for Givenchy captures the grace befitting of the esteemed house with a sense of feminine strength and power, which chime perfectly with today's times.

Photos: vogue.com

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