Daniel Rosebery’s Schiaparelli shows always dominate the Paris’ Couture Week calendar, bringing the best FROW, biggest runway cameos, and most grailed collections. This season, the house’s SS25 show titled “Icarus” was no different, with Alex Consani, Kendall Jenner, Mona Tougaard and more on the runway each wearing the stunning feats of design we’ve come to recognise Rosebery’s Schiaparelli for.
This season, Daniel Rosebery had a bone to pick with modernity, saying “I'm so tired of everyone constantly equating modernity with simplicity: Can't the new also be worked, be baroque, be extravagant? Has our fixation on what looks or feels modern become a limitation? Has it cost us our imagination?” Well, looking at Rosebery’s latest Schiaparelli collection, we can see it certainly hasn’t cost him his imagination.
For its SS25 show, guests were invited with a single gold feather, a reference to the title of the collection, “Icarus.” In case you don’t know, Icarus is a character from an ancient Greek myth who flew too close to the sun and died - it’s an allegory about reaching too high, venturing beyond your means, and getting burnt as a consequence. In his show notes, Rosebery explained why he referenced the myth: “perfection comes at a price. How high can we couturiers go? As high as the sun-and the Gods-allow us.”
Knowing this, the collection explored the idea of Haute Couture as “a quest for perfection” - and we’d have to say that Rosebery achieved it. His runways always leave audiences with their jaws on the floor, but the detail at Schiaparelli’s SS25 show was next level. No detail was neglected: feathers were dipped in glycerin to add weight; a baby doll dress was decorated with a thousand smoked quartz bugle droplets; and Rosebery’s team built corsets in toile, a technique that isn’t easy to master. As Rosebery said, “Every look here has been nurtured and tended to like a baby.”
As always, Daniel Rosebery took an intense interest in Schiaparelli’s archives, reviving iconic pieces like its prewar tailored jackets, which were elongated and simplified, and the house’s codes - doves, keyholes, and anatomy. However, Rosebery also mentioned that he also took inspo from other legendary couturiers of the past, including Madame Grès, Charles Frederick Worth, Paul Poiret, Yves Saint Laurent, and Azzedine Alaïa. He said “I didn't want to copy their work; I wanted to learn from them.”
Icarus might’ve flown too close to the sun and got burnt, but Schiaparelli’s SS25 collection soared high and was basking in those rays. Particularly when it comes to couture, but also in fashion in general, Daniel Rosebery’s got the right idea: minimalism is not the move rn.
Featured image via Culted©
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