AVAVAV FW24 Getty Images / Marco M. Mantovani via Highsnobiety.com

A simulated downpour at the Hermès show at Paris Fashion Week 2024. Photo via Nytimes.com

For years, even before the global pandemic, fashion lovers and industry insiders have sounded the death knell for fashion week. Fashion shows in general have come under fire for being costly, hype-driven, or even downright irrelevant.

However, to understand where we are now, we must go back to the beginning. The fashion show as we know it was pioneered by English designer Charles Frederick Worth, who is considered to be the father of haute couture.

Portrait of Charles Frederick Worth in 1885. Photo Charles Reutlinger/Private Collection via Madame.lefigaro.fr

In the 1860s, Worth bucked the trend (at the time) of using mannequins to display his creations and instead opted to present his work on live models in Paris. By the early 1900s, this style of presentation, then called “salon shows,” were adopted by fashion houses in London and New York. These were small, highly exclusive events, mostly limited to fashion buyers. Photography was prohibited as a means of preventing potential copycats from gaining access to images of the designs. Salon shows were less about artistic expression and were geared more toward selling clothing collections to clients. However, in the post-WWII era, fashion labels sought more public attention and made their shows accessible to more people. The 1960s saw runway models with a more playful demeanor in contrast to the more austere expressions of previous times. By the 80s and 90s, the runway resembled the fashion shows of today and included dramatic staging as well as lighting and sound effects.

The theatrical flair that we’ve come to expect from fashion shows in the present day has for some, been taken to the extreme. Fashion brand AVAVAV caused a stir at Milan Fashion Week this February with their “trashy” AW24 show. Audience members threw eggs, wrappers, banana peels and other garbage items at models as they walked on the runway. Negative Instagram comments directed at Beate Karlsson, the brand’s owner and creative director, scrolled endlessly on screens on either side of the runway. This fashion-show-meets-performance-piece was intended to be a commentary on the online trolling and hate that Karlsson and AVAVAV have been subjected to since starting the brand in 2019. According to an Instagram post from AVAVAV, “Hate comments and internet trolls have become a part of modern culture. The show is an experiment where this verbal brutality is translated into a physical space, and hopefully shows that it isn’t necessarily a reflection of reality.”

AVAVAV AW24 finale. Photography by Justin Shin via Getty Images via Dazeddigital.com

As if to prove the brand’s point, detractors took to the Instagram comment section to lament that the trash-throwing was merely another gimmick to distract from the “boring” clothes and to lambast Karlsson for her treatment of the models. Backstage, a number of models informed Dazed Magazine that they were willing participants in the garbage extravaganza and had been informed about what the show entailed at casting.

For some, the fashion show is a stage for spectacle and controversy. For others, however, the format of the fashion show is a way to express creativity. In 2020, Congolese brand Hanifa shattered the status quo with a virtual fashion show on Instagram Live that featured the brand’s pieces on 3-D, headless forms that waltzed down the runway. This approach was lauded as the future of fashion. Even though the show was launched in the height of the pandemic, Hanifa’s founder Anifa Mvuemba told CNN’s Aisha Salaudeen that she already had plans to go for a digital format long before COVID-19 restrictions were established.

Despite this futuristic approach taken by the likes of Hanifa, some houses such as The Row looked to the past as inspiration for their fashion shows. The Row reverted to the photography- free salon show model at its Paris Fashion Week earlier this year and was met with mixed reactions. Some praised the phone ban, claiming that it signaled fashion’s renewed focus on clothes rather than flashy, live-streamed hype. Others felt that it undermined inclusion and perpetuated inequality of access to fashion. Either way, The Row was, ironically, talked about in social media spaces, even though photos of the show were nowhere to be seen.

Phoebe Philo Edit 1. Photo via Phoebephilo.com

While some houses opted to return to basics in terms of their fashion show formats, others opted to forgo the show entirely. Phoebe Philo’s namesake brand was launched in October 2023 with little to no promotion; the collection simply appeared on her website for sale and was sold out in a matter of hours. In this case, the absence of a fashion show, whether in person or virtual, failed to have a negative impact on sales. In the ever-evolving landscape of fashion, the debate over the relevance and format of fashion shows rages on. From its beginnings as exclusive salon events to today's theatrical spectacles and virtual showcases, the essence of the fashion show remains a subject of contention.

While some designers embrace the traditional runway, others challenge conventions with innovative approaches or eschew shows altogether. Whether through avant-garde performances like AVAVAV's provocative statement or the quiet revolution of brands like The Row, the industry continues to navigate its path forward. As fashion evolves, one thing remains certain: the conversation surrounding the fashion show is far from over, and its future promises to be as dynamic and diverse as the designers who define it.

Article by Ren Wilson, Contributor, PhotoBook Magazine
Tearsheets by Nicolas Harris, Graphic Design Intern, PhotoBook Magazine

Must the Show Go On? The Evolving Format of the Fashion Show