Balenciaga bids farewell to Demna with a couture collection rooted in craft, not controversy

Demna’s final bow at Balenciaga arrived not with spectacle but with subtlety, a word rarely associated with the designer who has redefined the house over nearly a decade. The maison's 54th haute couture collection, shown Wednesday in Paris, was both a personal farewell and a statement of return: to construction, to silhouette, and to the atelier.

The Georgian-born designer, who is now preparing to take the creative reins at Gucci, leaves behind a Balenciaga that is radically different from the one he inherited in 2015. Under his tenure, the brand’s revenue grew more than fivefold, according to analysts at HSBC, with parent company Kering reporting Balenciaga as one of its fastest-growing brands in the pre-pandemic years. Demna transformed the label into a cultural juggernaut, often courting controversy but always commanding attention.

This collection, however, eschewed provocation for polish. Shown at Balenciaga’s couture salons on Avenue George V, the show featured both men’s and women’s looks and opened with sculptural tailoring: boxy shoulders, wasp waists, and floor-grazing outerwear — hallmarks of Demna’s lexicon. But here, they were rendered with a restraint that signalled maturity. There was none of the ironic logo play or meme-ready accessories of seasons past — save perhaps the gold briefcase in the penultimate look. Instead, the emphasis was on cut, proportion, and precision, with many garments requiring hundreds of hours of meticulous handwork in the atelier.

“These were real clothes,” one fashion insider remarked, “not just statements.”

Indeed, craft - not concept - stole the show. The atelier’s skill was showcased in couture leather, sweeping coats, and sculpted gowns that clung like a tortoise's shell. Houndstooth wool, crepe de chine and faux fur were meticulously treated, without the gimmicks that often defined Demna’s ready-to-wear. The collection reinforced Balenciaga’s technical capacity — a signal, perhaps, to the couture clients who buy, rather than scroll.

Kim Kardashian, a long-time collaborator, embodied Look 9: a modern Elizabeth Taylor in a pale satin slip dress with a lace-trimmed bust and hem. Draped in a faux-fur coat and adorned with diamond earrings once owned by Taylor, loaned by Lorraine Schwartz, her walk was a reminder of how Demna leveraged celebrity not merely for headlines but for narrative impact.

At the arrivals, Nicole Kidman, who memorably walked the runway in a past couture outing, appeared in a sharply tailored black pantsuit and stilettos. Outside, the torch was already being passed: Pierpaolo Piccioli, Balenciaga’s incoming creative director, was spotted departing on a moped. Piccioli, the former creative force behind Valentino’s romantic renaissance, will debut his vision with a ready-to-wear collection in October during Paris Fashion Week.

Though Demna’s legacy is polarizing, marked by both cultural breakthroughs and PR crises — his impact is undeniable. He made Balenciaga relevant again, not only to the fashion elite but to a generation raised on irony and Instagram. Yet his final show suggests a parting message: that true luxury is not noise but nuance. The soundtrack of names of his collaborators echoed this point.

Whether Piccioli will continue that message, or pivot entirely, remains to be seen. But for now, Demna leaves the stage on a quiet high, the volume turned down, the atelier’s voice turned up.