THE RESIDENTIAL RUNWAY: HOW THIS SET DESIGN PUSHES FOR MORE INCLUSIVE FASHION SHOWS
Photo Courtesy of At_Paris
17 jul 2023, for frame
Location
121 Bd Lefebvre, 75015 Paris, France
Design
Brand
Situated in the low-income neighbourhood where the brand's creative director grew up, 3.Paradis’ SS24 show space sent a powerful message about inclusivity in fashion.
Key features
French-Canadian contemporary ready-to-wear brand 3.Paradis unveiled its SS2024 fashion show on Instagram with a video announcement featuring two boys using water pistols to paint a soft blue winding path at Paris’s Square des Périchaux. The runway itself was installed there on 23 June – a date marking exactly six years since the elder brother of creative director Emeric Tchatchoua passed away. The brand's inaugural runway show in Paris thus beared significant sentimental value for Tchatchoua, taking him back to the neighbourhood of his childhood.
For the show, At Paris designed a unique catwalk mirroring the square's pathways. Its surrounding lawns were dotted with artistically bent basketball hoops, swings and miniature children's playgrounds, all painted in the same soothing shade of blue – a color synonymous with the 3.Paradis brand. Swarovski crystals embellished the basketball hoops and swing ropes, contributing to the event’s surrealistic, Dalí-inspired ambience. The audience experienced the show seated on benches inscribed with the collection's name, Journey of Dreams. Meanwhile, local residents were able to observe the spectacle from their apartment windows.
FRAME's take
The symbolism embedded in 3.Paradis’ SS2024 runway design paints a vivid portrait of life itself: the winding path and intertwining elements embody the challenges and victories experienced throughout the brand's decade-long existence. These sparkling details added a touch of glamour and dreaminess to otherwise ordinary playground objects, bringing high fashion into a modernistic urban context.
The show's location bears significant meaning. Few, if any, fashion shows have taken place in low-income neighbourhoods. This runway exemplifies how fashion can become an integral part of the urban tapestry, weaving together diverse socio-economic communities and inspiring hope and aspiration, regardless of individual circumstances. Moreover, it underscores the pivotal role of fashion spaces within the broader context of architectural and urban development. The transformation of an environment of low-cost modernistic blocks into a runway transcends conventional fashion norms and marks a significant shift in spatial utilization and design concepts. It breathes new life into fashion events, challenges the established status quo and shapes new norms in urban design.