At Balenciaga, Demna ended as he began: with intense reverence for the ghosts of Old Hollywood, fascinated with his personal perversions of streetwear, and forever entangled in the pop culture he, at times, rebuffed. The Georgian-born designer closed out his tenure at the house with the 54th couture show in Paris this morning. The collection felt less like a grand finale and more like a respectful farewell. Though it was still star-studded, of course—with Lorde, Nicole Kidman, Michelle Yeoh, Kyle MacLachlan, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Lisa Rinna, Lauren Sánchez, and the reigning queen of couture, Cardi B, in attendance.
The celebrity moments didn’t stop there. Despite his recent aversion to the presence of gimmicks in fashion, Demna paid the OG internet-breaker Kim Kardashian the biggest tribute of them all, transforming her into Elizabeth Taylor (not to mention, he streamed the show live on Substack.)
The designer has always idolized the glitz, glam, and imperfections that came with midcentury fashion (and that have since been buffed smooth by social media). Draped in a faux mink coat made from feathers, cinched into a Cat on a Hot Tin Roof nude slip dress, and adorned in Taylor’s personal diamond earrings from Lorraine Schwartz’s private collection, Kardashian was a textbook image of that ideal.
The runway was saturated with “Demna-isms.” Hidden references, archival prints, and thoroughly haute techniques quietly simmered beneath the surface. Isabelle Huppert’s chin-cupping pantsuit suggested a New Hollywood archetype who camouflages plastic surgery bandages with couture. (See also: the prosthetic swollen lips from the pre-fall 2024 Erewhon collaboration show in L.A.). Hugely oversized suits with jackets sliding off the shoulder, after being made-to-measure on a body builder, and stiffly contorting gowns—these are the designs that write the final chapter of Demna’s Balenciaga DNA. Controversial as his fashions may often seem, he effectively created his own class of archetypes for a new generation to retrospectively admire—just like those over which he obsesses.
In some ways, his public exhibition “Balenciaga by Demna,” staged inside the Kering headquarters in Paris during the week leading up to the show, felt like more of a farewell to the fanfare that built his community. Demna was on the scene himself, chatting and offering additional context for the featured designs. Meanwhile, the couture presentation was an official “thank you” to the industry that cemented his legacy and the brand that allowed him to re-open couture. Hence why the runway was soundtracked by a voiceover of atelier workers speaking each other’s names.
Demna has rested comfortably in the design codes that he brought to the house, never quite reverting nor starting anew. As he prepares for a new chapter at Gucci, today’s show served as a quiet goodbye.
Alexandra Hildreth is the Fashion News Editor at ELLE. She is fascinated by style trends, industry news, shake-ups, and The Real Housewives. Previously, she attended the University of St Andrews in Scotland. Following graduation, she moved back to New York City and worked as a freelance journalist and producer.
