Digital PFW SS21: Front Row Voices

Yu Masui

Had you planned to attend Paris Fashion Week? What will you miss most?

Yes! I was going to attend PFW. Instead I’m on “online” PFW & watching fashion films from designers every 1 hour. Missing many things... Ham sandwiches (Usually grab them to walk & eat when too busy), the best croissants @ Du Pain et des Idées (almost everyday breakfast), Soupe Phnom Penh @ Le Petit Cambodge (late night dinner) or even carrot rapees from super market (light dinner after a few days of rich French food)... Of course not just food, missing people a lot... fashion friends from all over the world... TBH even missing those rude French waiters @ cafe!

Apart from the shows, there are many aspects important to the experience, whether that be the city itself, streetstyle inspiration, or after parties. What is fashion week without all this?

Boring... I must say. Those films @ “online” PFW can be creative. But watching them at home (stuck) in every hours (some in 30mins) was easy but lack of excitement (esp we usually change options about collection straight after shows). In fact I went out to grocery, cafe... etc (you can see on insta post). That might be good thing that we can have access to presentations any where. Btw Mihara Yasuhiro’s puppet fashion week film was funny. I felt like I was attending fashion week.

Source: @yumasui

Shoop Clothing

Source: @shoopclothing

You recently participated in London Fashion Week, what difficulties as a label did you encounter?

Telework. It was difficult to communicate and understand the details with our team.

Should the physical format return, which is set to happen in September, do you think they will be different? What cues, if any, will they take from digital presentations? 

We believe that physical format should return as there are some aspects that people might miss - touch and feel the products. But as the world is changing quickly, digital presentations are becoming an important element but the fashion industry is yet to be prepared for it.

Jeremy Alvarez

You have a way of perfectly capturing the energy and creativity on the streets during fashion week, how different is this season for you? 

This season is very weird as most of the Fashion weeks are either taking place online or purely cancelled. Streetstyle is pretty much non-existent at this point. September will be crucial and hopefully we'll see things coming back to normal.

Do digital fashion shows have the capacity to replace the physical format? 

At the moment, and generally speaking, I mostly see digital shows as complements rather than substitutes of physical shows. I’m curious to see how many brands will still go for the digital option after the pandemic ends. To me, physical gatherings still remain a key element of the fashion weeks.

Source: @french_aesthete

Louisahhh

Source: @louisahhh

Music plays a key role in fashion, whether that be on the runway, or into the night at after parties. How important is this live element? 

I think music and fashion are inextricably linked; the sound of a collection can help build the universe from which it exists, give energy to the ‘theater’ of the runway, showcase the attitude that the clothing is supposed to reflect. Music obviously also creates the ambience of after parties and helps support the social constellations that are meaningful for both the fashion and music world. As an artist, it’s become a space to creatively challenge an audience, which is exciting.

Has the situation forced us to be more creative? 

For me personally, the lockdown has definitely forced a lot of innovation. Instead of running around, a lot of us are home-bound, which gives us time to create and allow new projects to come to fruition. I think I’ve actually become a better dj, a better song-writer during this time as there were fewer distractions taking me away from home and my creative practice. I look forward to seeing what work comes out of this challenging but potentially fertile period.