The 1% is Paris´s newest controversial runway in their Fashion Week. Hannah Rose Dalton and Raj Bhaskaran, the owners of Matières Fécales (Fecal Matter), are known for their “grotesque works” with a very post-humanity vibe. They bring in different sci-fi themes like aliens with different “body modifications,” and a staple harsh makeup on themselves and their models.
Both Hannah and Raj had very different lives growing up. Raj lived a very modest life; he was middle- to lower-class, whereas Hannah lived a life of wealth and many privileges that Raj didn’t have. Setting aside their differences, they talked about how contrasting their lives were. They agreed that the 1% of the richest are always soaking in riches and are correlated to crimes, while others face the consequences of capitalism, and are tied to the decline of the middle to lower class.
The 1% is a straight attack on the richest people on the planet: The first part of the set is based on a bourgeois family who display their status on their sleeves. We meet all members of the family, the grandparents, the parents, and the daughters. The dressing also allows viewers to meet the scandal itself.
They mention misconduct a lot in their work. When unpacking the collection notes published with the line, The Scandal is casting light on recent events such as the Epstein Files and other injustices tied mainly to today’s government. They portray the rich as these almost omnipotent beings having overall jurisdiction of the land.
The family’s outfits are very couture; they scream, “I just bought a $10,000 dress because I wanted to.” Many of them wear banknotes on their clothing, or wear them on their eyes, symbolizing being blinded by their greed. One common feature of the family’s outfits is their gloves. They are either black or white, but each one of the palm areas is touched with red to represent their insatiable itch for money.
Another trend that has slowly integrated into recent years of fashion is kink wear. Somewhat of a relative to the nudist-fashion trends. There has been a huge explosion of designers using different designs related to different fetishes. Such as BDSM, Latex, Leather, etc. They used this with the Family’s design with things like a mouth gag, being tied up, and latex/leather accents on their clothing or their shoes. For example, one lady is tied with pearls to represent her very close ties and is entangled in her own rapacity.
The next group is the stereotypical “Occult,” supposed to oppose the anarchy of the system. It represents the power of the community and how we fight and try to keep the powerful in line. Each member of the cult is branded with the word “CULT,” and during their run, they form in a circle in almost a seance formation.
Their outfits are represented by different alternative fashions. We mainly see very intense traditional gothic makeup, punk, and an almost Victorian gothic look. This is to further represent the fight against the people with higher power, using alternative motifs. If you know anything about the alternative community, it’s based on fighting societal norms and the political state of our government. I think that in itself is a very powerful message against those people holding power.
After all the efforts to change the world consumed by its capitalism, it now suffers the consequences of its actions, now in a post-apocalyptic world set by Hannah and Raj. Where wealth doesn’t measure power. In a very nihilistic setting.
But it also has themes of a human’s obsession with “eternal youth” and the acceptance of aging. Two paths that are bound to collide in the near future.
The outfits here are their signature alien-like looks, to represent the “eternal youth,” using heavy face cosmetics, making it look as if they’ve undergone deep plastic surgeries and are still recovering from them. Post-humanism really feeds into their narrative of the “conclusion” of a capitalist society.
After all those categories, you’ll then have the people accepting the aging of their bodies, using bare makeup looks or none whatsoever. They also included older people in their work, which many designers oppose, choosing to use young and beautiful models. In order to fight the obscurity of older models not being incorporated into fashion, they hired aged models.
All in all, I really enjoy this storytelling runway. I think it tells a very strong story about today’s world and what will transpire in the years to come. My personal rating is a 9.5/10
