EXCERPT: BALENCIAGA PRE-FALL 2023.
"...This is the peril of relying on a mix bag of celebrities to sell a product. And it reminds me, in its similarity, of the collapse of the crypto exchange FTX, who had also used a plethora of celebrities to sell their 'coins' via Twitter and other social media outlets. Only to be frantically deleting their tweets after the crypto Ponzi scheme was investigated for fraud by the FBI.
Demna's Fall 2023 collection has attempted to bring Balenciaga back to a rawer from, which as noted in my review of his return to the runway after the controversy, maybe a reset of sorts. And the Georgian designer does work best when he simplifies the brand with cleverly detailed tweaks, which in turn creates an interest for the Demna Balenciaga fanbase. There is no mistaking the Eastern European charm that Demna brings to Balenciaga ala his Vetements imprint, be it that 1990's rave scene of Poland, Ukraine, Georgia and Russia, which in all of its irony could never afford Western street/sportswear brand names, but was, before China, creating en masse imitations and knock offs of Adidas footwear and jackets. When I see this reflection of his Eastern European roots from Demna's Balenciaga, it does create a redemption of interest for me. Of course, this has been underlying to most of his runaway shows and lookbooks, more so his rag tag team of Balenciaga models, which do indeed look like they've stepped out of the underworld of some Eastern European city..."
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(A.Glass 2023)
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