Balenciaga Beyond Belief

I think there's been a bit of a sag with Balenciaga lately but Fall 2010 has put Nicolas Ghesquiere back on top.
The fact that he shows clothes which defy description or category is testament to his skill. You can't simply look at his work and break it down into mere trends like you would with anything from New York or Milan. You just look at it and you want to ask, what exactly are you telling me this season? But the key to his work is to forget everything you've seen and just take it in.
So what was there? I don't even know. Bulbous coats slashed with strips of colour that was reminiscent of Spring 2010 but with backpack-like furs stamped on. A dash of hospital green and candy floss. There were jackets in a marle grey modelled by Liya Kebede, a long time favourite model of Ghesquiere that made you think of the work he was doing when he first started out. And then the shoes by long time collaborator Pierre Hardy that were a mixture of classic plus wood plus mineral.
I don't know, you just need to look at the collection and take it in. Ghesquiere is one of very few designers who are free to do what they want and really push fashion into a place that is more than mere trends, sales, editorial and especially the 'I want it now, I need it'. It's fashion. Scratch that. It's more than fashion.