To make noise today in fashion you need to make impact. The quickest way to do this? Choose the right location for your runway. Look to brands such as Valentino which streamed its show at the iconic École normale supérieure. Front row attendees included names such as Florence Pugh and Cher, but the real power were the millions of viewers who tuned in to watch the live stream, not only to see the collection, but to glimpse inside the vast space with its stone columns and blocks of marble that usually not many can enter. And, if you can't gain access to a location you've dreamed of, make it. JW Anderson added scupltures to a warehouse turning his show into an interactive gallery.
Discover some of our most truly unique and charismatic spaces available in the upcoming weeks to get you noticed during fashion month, whether you're planning on attending - or not. And, when you do find the perfect spot in London, New York or Paris, here’s our top iconic runways from luxury houses and next gen brands to give you some aesthetic inspiration.
MIAOU, PFW SS24
For the first time in the brand’s six year history, founder Alexia Elkaim chose to show the newest Miaou collection in Paris. A venue that couldn’t look more Parisian, the 18th century Haussmann ballroom was the perfect balance between old and new, baroque and modern - and a great case study on how to make an impact with minimal effort. Sometimes the venue really does say it all. Miaou’s new collection was available to shop straight after the show at their pop-up in the Marais.
NICHOLAS DALEY, LFW AW23
Leicester-born, London based designer Nicholas Daley revealed his AW23 collection, ‘Roots to Rebel’ during London Fashion Week against a backdrop of images that depict the impact of subcultural movements outside of London.
Set out to highlight the Black and British diasporic experience in post-war Britain, Daley embraces the Afro-Caribbean community by looking back at 1970s Coventry — the collection was inspired by the social unrest experienced across the country during troubling times and reflects the upbeat Jamaican spirit that influenced the UK fashion scene. Daley instructs this narrative through the juxtaposition of his models in front of the black and white photography.
VALENTINO, PFW SS24
Choosing a school for a runway was a tactical choice for Valentino’s Creative Director Pierpaolo Piccioli. The designer wanted to reflect and educate his guests on Italy’s victim blaming controversy and collaborated with FKA Twigs who debuted her latest song and gave a highly physical, choreographed performance during the brand’s show presentation at the great hall of the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts.
Piccioli explained that he doesn't believe in “the ideas of women ‘the clever one’, ‘the sexy one’, and ‘the romantic one’, feminism is a celebration of women’s freedom.”
PRADA, MFW SS24
Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons know a thing or two about creating iconic, viral fashion moments and that reflects on their venues. For this season’s venue, in collaboration with ABO, they included green slime dripping to create an invisible wall between the models and the crowd. Creating a slime waterfall at the Deposito of the Fondazione Prada is true viral-material, don’t you think?
LOEWE, PFW SS24
Are runways the new gallery? According to Jonathan Anderson - the answer is yes. The designer is no stranger to collaborations with some of the coolest artists, and this season he invited Lynda Benglis to feature her sculptures on Loewe’s runway, as well as co-design a jewellery collection for the brand. The artist exhibited six recent large-scale bronze sculptures, as the models were showing Anderson’s art-like fashion pieces. Some of these sculptures were included at Frieze London earlier this month.
ACNE STUDIOS, PFW SS24
Let’s address the giant disco ball in the room… Designed by Lukas Gschwandter, the Acne Studios show included this deconstructed disco ball, reflecting around the room and mirroring its surroundings through its broken pieces. Creative director Jonny Johansson got inspiration from a construction site, where “things are unfinished, a work in progress, there’s beauty in that.”
LOUIS VUITTON, PFW SS24
Director of womenswear Nicolas Ghesquière loves presenting his Louis Vuitton collections in architectural landmarks of Paris: the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, on the Pont Neuf...For his latest show, he made the most out of Louis Vuitton's new building on the boulevard, which at the time, was still undergoing renovation. That did not deter Ghesquière who brought in American production designer James Chinlund to construct a runway to match the feeling of being inside a hot air balloon. The result? Breathtaking.
COURRÈGES, PFW SS24
Groundbreaking… literally. What looked like a normal concrete floor at Courrèges’ show started cracking as the models opened the show. From director Nicolas de Felice, the floor was made of plaster, underlaid with fireman hoses that were deflated in time with the music causing the cracks. Guests had some hints in the invite and were definitely amazed by this moon-like runway venue.
Click here to see Appear Here’s fashion week showrooms spaces available to rent this January/February.