The 1997 fashion show was to be a history of 20th century clothing recounting the mastery involved in making clothing; it turned out to be an exceptional haute couture collection in the truest sense of the word.



Dresses in every imaginable style (Fin de siècle, Summer 95), homages to the century's great designers with today's reinterpretation, renew with the roots of the Parisienne's elegance. Jean-Paul Gaultier has found the quintessence of dresses from the 20's, 30's and 40's, etc., and introduces anachronisms, nostalgia in reality. "I've made collages of the periods, it gives crossbred silhouettes, retrospective but never faithful copies. The work is current, taffetas are sewn with microfiber nylon, zippers have replaced hooks, stretch knits provide comfort and pockets a touch of practicality".



In the same vein, man rejects machismo and opts for seduction (L'homme couture, F/W 96-97), unveiling a low-cut back or the glimpse of an ankle, so many fragments considered desirable in women, without compromising his virility of course. As for the clothing, the strict cut and demanding finishes are always there despite the fantasy of taffetas, dupion, embroidery and glitter, the dresses and trouser-skirts designed in the spirit of yesteryear's brothels (La maison des plaisirs, S/S 97). A maharajah tries out a kilt under a sailor's jacket, a bathtub sailor plays with red and white stripes, a dandy in every type of polka-dot.



Another expression is found in the variations on a cube, or how does clothing hang by itself on a body? (La boule et le cube, F/W 96-97). Answer: weighted volumes like in olden days. Quadrilateral structures, cubic volumes, ribs accentuating the lines of geometrical shapes, dresses, sheaths, skirts reminiscent of the 60's options. Quite logically, this collection is succeeded by a game of heads or tails (La parisienne punk, S/S 97), silhouettes - trousers, shirt, vest, jacket- that are actually one piece of ultra chic clothing as seen from the front, a masterly trompe l'oeil, and has a few surprises in back: bare backs with trousers cut so low on the waist as to show a glimpse of the color and geometry of G-string fishnet stockings!