March 6, 2021 |
Forget a trip to the drive-in cinema, what about a fashion show that you can enjoy from the comfort of your own car? Coperni, the tech-savvy label helmed by Sébastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillant – ex-creative directors of Courrèges – were able to pull off the only show in Paris, thus far, which had a live audience.
On Thursday evening, 35 electric cars (manned by Covid-tested drivers) picked up 70 guests (two per car) and drove them straight to the Accord Arena; a mammoth venue on the outskirts of Paris which seats 20,000 people, where they didn’t leave their vehicles to watch the show.
“This is where Beyoncé does her concerts,” a giddy Meyer was keen to point out over Zoom, sat next to Vaillant in their studio. Innovation and technology are the driving force behind the brand. Though despite relishing in off-kilter ways to unveil their collections in the past – interactive fashion films and gallery installations, y’know, the sort of things which have become the norm during the pandemic? – the pair, last year, was keen on bringing back the physical element. “The danger with technology is that it’s very cold, you lose humanity,” explains Meyer.
After showing at Station F (Paris’ “temple of technology”) and on the roof of Tour Montparnasse (the city’s tallest skyscraper) for their past two shows, the Coperni boys wanted to prove they could push themselves even further. “The most exciting thing in fashion is when people take risks,” adds Vaillant, who explains the collection is a techy ode to dancefloor dressing.
Charging against beaming headlights to thundering techno, Adut Akech opened the show wearing an A-line mini dress. She was followed by a procession of sharp blazers with pronounced shoulders, dewy leather trousers and snowy faux furs which appeared to shadow the form of the wearer – thanks to haute couture-level caging constructions beneath. The idea of transformation also played a central role, whether it was bias-cut satin dresses that unfolded into new drapes, or the iPhone-sized Lock bag, that can be unzipped to become completely flat.
“After the pandemic, it’s really going to be the golden years for clubbing, and people are going to want to dress sexy,” says Meyer. With Coperni at the wheel, strap yourself in as this is set to be one wild, hedonistic ride. *Beep, beep!*
Photography courtesy of Coperni.
