Ann Demeulemeester SS24 Is Unabashedly Grunge
Marking the beginning of Stefano Gallici’s reign at the darkly glamorous label.
Ann Demeulemeester began its next chapter during Paris Fashion Week on Saturday evening. Stefano Gallici, previously the brand’s menswear designer and now in the top seat as creative director, lifted the veil on his debut collection for Spring/Summer 2024 at a removed warehouse in the city’s outskirts. Following Ludovic de Saint Sernin, who exited the label after only six months in the lead position, Gallici set forth a range that referenced memorable moments in Demuelemeester’s archives with a present-day punkish tone.
The sounds of crashing waves wafted over the venue’s dimly lit hall, just as the show was set to begin. The starting looks showcased Gallici’s mastery of the label’s archetypes: genderless suits were decorated with subversive harnesses, black gowns were quietly dramatic, and sheerness proved key to many ensembles.
The color story was dominantly black and white, until a sheer blue dress emerged in a tone that nodded to Demeulemeester’s work in the ‘90s. That same hue appeared twice more — on a pair of straight trousers and on a belted gown — disrupting the otherwise neutral palette with a stark reminder of the brand’s legacy.
Belts, in multiples, were a collection mainstay. Dragging behind models on the runway, they appeared wrapped and tangled around the waist in oftentimes chaotic forms. Constraining their wearers, there was still something boundless about their free-flowing nature that articulated Gallici’s motive behind it all: “to be as one wants.”
In the designer’s words, this is a collection that offers the freedom “to build personal mindscapes, and dress them accordingly, using items of clothing that are attentively defined to appear undefined, enticing ways to play with each piece to make it one’s own.”
See Ann Demeulemeester’s Spring/Summer 2024 collection in the gallery above, and stay tuned to Hypebeast for more Paris Fashion Week coverage.
