BALENCIAGA SPRING 22: “CLONES”

Technology creates alternative realities. Balenciaga’s Spring 22 collection shows our ever-changing perception from a new angle: through the eyes of technology. Everything has been changed, polished up, adapted, difficult to differentiate between real and fake. As if we were seeing our world through a filter. Technology not only creates alternative realities, but also alternative identities, a world of digital clones.

What is special about this year’s show is that every look is shown on Eliza Douglas, an artist who either opened or closed every show and was also featured in most of the campaigns.  Quentin Deronzier’s video goes one step further: Eliza appears as a series of digital clones, some deepfakes, sometimes models, with her face set on.

The artificial manipulation with props can also be seen in the looks, such as chainmail headpieces made of silver, gold and chrome. Like last time, the models are accompanied by a sci-fi-inspired soundtrack from BFRND, characterized by an AI voiceover in which the lyrics of “La Vie En Rose” are recited as they march down the minimalist catwalk.

This season is characterized by new shapes and wearable concepts, as well as functional accessories, characterized by cuts and deconstruction, which creates new silhouettes that sit differently on the human body. The hacker project products also play a role here, as they reveal a conceptual interpretation of Gucci’s unmistakable handwriting. The hacker project presents products in which the identities of the two houses merge and questions the ideas of authenticity, falsification or appropriation within the fashion industry.

All pictures courtesy of Balenciaga