Pieter Mulier’s debut at Alaïa fixed for July 4, on eve of couture week

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
May 21, 2021

The house of Azzedine Alaïa has scheduled the debut of its new creative director Pieter Mulier for July 4, thus staging his inauguration on the eve of Paris haute couture week.

The show, scheduled for 9 p.m. CET on Sunday night, will mark the first time an Alaïa collection has been presented on a runway since 2017, when Naomi Campbell opened a catwalk display that would end with Azzedine Alaïa’s last-ever bow.
 
“The date itself also carries special meaning for the Maison as the presentation will be held exactly four years after Azzedine Alaïa‘s last show in July 2017,” the house noted in a release made available to FashionNetwork.com.

One of the greatest all-time talents in the pantheon of fashion designers, Alaïa passed away in November 2017, aged 77. Legendary for his iconoclastic approach, Alaïa frequently staged shows well out of the traditional Paris seasons.

 
“Staying true to its singular creative approach, Alaïa will jointly present its Ready-to-Wear collection and Couture creations for the coming season while celebrating the start of an important new chapter for the Maison,” the Paris-based house added in a release.
 
The official French haute couture season runs from July 5 to 8 this summer.
 
Alaïa appointed Mulier – the long-time right-hand man of Raf Simons - in February, in a wildly applauded move given his sterling reputation. A student of architecture, Mulier is one of the most experienced designers in the industry, who has worked for major houses in Milan, Paris and New York – Jil Sander, Christian Dior and Calvin Klein.
 
Since Alaïa’s death, the house has mainly produced archival collections, such as The Editions, an emblematic selection of 30 looks culled for the house’s extensive archives.
 
Mulier’s debut will be one of the most anticipated events of the couture season, which will witness the return to live shows in Paris, notably by Chanel, and also the first of a series of one-off couture collections by  guest designers for Jean Paul Gaultier. This July’s debutant is Chitose Abe, the celebrated designer of Japanese marque Sacai.