Avante-garde fashion returned to the city of lights this week for the Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week 2023. 29 high-end designers featured in the coveted lineup, with a number of lesser-known international talents making strong debuts alongside iconic fashion houses.
We look back at the best looks from the Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week 2023, both on and off the runway.

This year’s Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week started off with a bang at Schiaparelli’s Spring/Summer 2023 showcase.

Inspired by the epic poem Dante’s Inferno, the collection delivered eye-catching looks both on and off the runway, most notably with Kylie Jenner’s hyper-realistic lion’s head garment and Doja Cat’s red ensemble which saw her covered in 30,000 red Swarovski crystals.
Viktor & Rolf also made a splash with a playful showcase where models strutted down the runway in upside down and sideways dresses, proving to be one of the most avante-garde shows of the week.

Dior designer Maria Grazia Chiuri paid homage to jazz icon Josephine Baker with a dazzling collection featuring crushed velvet, beaded fringes, sparkling gems.

South Korean designer Sohee Park debuted at Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week with a dramatic and seductive Miss Sohee lineup, playing with the idea of dark mystery with veils and shadows. Contrasting the sexy silhouettes were striking embellishments and intricate embroidery.

Jean Paul Gaultier delivered high fashion at its finest, designer Haider Ackermann’s collection transfixing audiences with a collection that paid homage to Gaultier’s immaculate and graceful tailoring.
Models transformed into harlequin figures dressed in pastels for Armani’s haute couture showcase. Featuring shades of pale link, purple and green the show’s standout pieces included bolero jackets paired with satin pants and slim gowns with sparkling beadwork.

Cameroonian designer Imane Ayissi made history in 2020 when he became the first designer from sub-Saharan Africa to join the exclusive haute couture lineup. Three years later, his Spring/Summer 2023 collection delivered a vibrant array of textiles, fringing, and feminine silhouettes.

Indian designer Rahul Mishra dazzled with ethereal, feathered gowns in a collection inspired by the creatures of the cosmos, most notably embodied in the striking motifs of exotic birds.

French designer Stéphane Rolland’s golden finale look with its elegant tear drop cut-out was a true heavenly wonder. Rolland says the piece was inspired by Brazil’s patron saint, Nossa Senhora da Conceição Aparecida, designed to represent spiritual women.
