The radical elan of Art Deco permeates the Winter 2022 Saint Laurent women’s collection. The reference is not literal, informing the show more in essence and overall outline than in direct quotations. Nancy Cunard, the independent-minded activist publisher who dressed audaciously ahead of her time –giving a masculine wardrobe her own indelible imprint served as a guiding template. Anthony Vaccarello found a way to take Cunard’s intrepid ethos and embed it resolutely in our current moment. To achieve this, signature pieces of the house take on a dramatic new shape enveloping a long fluid line underneath.

The considered silhouette is defined by tension : key Yves Saint Laurent outerwear items in denser materials morph into paletot-style coats that attenuate downward, paired with flute-like dresses in delicate fabrics. Fluttering flashes of transparency and unexpected footwear add lightness. Fresh proportions are seen throughout, as volume is shifted for a strong sloped shoulder, while a thin elongated impression is interrupted with brash, elemental jewelry : stacks of bracelets cast in silver, gold and bronze.