Issey Miyake's new designer Satoshi Kondo had models in free-flowing dresses dancing, twirling and skateboarding around a former 19th century mortuary for his Paris Fashion Week show.
From the cast-iron rafters of the "Cent Quatre" art space, which for more than a century was home to the capital's municipal undertakers, dresses were slowly lowered onto models to the ethereal electronic sounds of French artist DeLaurentis.
"I wanted to express the joy of wearing clothes and the joy of movement. So you see the models dancing, almost like in the wind, moving together", Kyoto-born designer Kondo said of his ready-to-wear Spring/Summer 2020 collection.
Rather than parading single-file past viewers on a catwalk, Kondo's models twirled around the massive hall in striped "parasol" frocks featuring Issey Miyake's trademark pleats, while others in lightweight nylon raincoats zigzagged on electric skateboards.
Wearing ensembles with splashes of raspberry pink, lime green and lilac, models jumped up and down to enhance the bouncy effect of near-translucent fabrics and loosely-woven dresses, and waved fan-shaped bags in a riot of colour and movement.
Paris Fashion Week runs until Oct 1.
