The innovative platform known as AZ Factory Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2023 has taken a bold, enriching step forward, nourishing the dreams of the industry’s most promising young designers. This couture week saw the showcase of ingeniously crafted collections from the newest players in fashion, among them, the French-born visionary, Lora Sonney.
Born from a nexus of sustainability, creativity, and couture, Sonney, a recent graduate from Geneva’s Head and a 2022 Hyères finalist, was given the prestigious opportunity to conceive a unique 10-piece collection in association with Swiss textile titan, Maison Jackob Schlaepfer. Together, they’ve nurtured a collection that exhibits not just Sonney’s distinctive voice but also the playful spirit of the late Alber Elbaz.
Sonney’s collection whispers tales of the natural world and its myriad delights, drawing inspiration from the essence of gardening, nature, and the glorious outdoors. Sustainability and upcycling take center stage, breathing life into the most unexpected materials. A tableau vivant, set amidst the verdant oasis of Fondation Cartier‘s hidden garden, served as the canvas for Sonney’s sustainable masterpieces, including basket bags ingeniously woven from recycled garden hoses.
From this nurturing environment emerged a vibrant trapeze coat, its silhouette echoing Sonney’s proclivity for spacious, protective outerwear that showcases her feminine creativity. Swirling prints inspired by everyday garden house pipes brought a dash of color to her line-up, a poignant homage to Elbaz’s contagious zest for life.
The collection blossoms further, channeling Elbaz’s joie de vivre into the ruffled volants dancing from the fuzzy mohair hem of a sleeveless turquoise tunic, and sparkling in the hand-applied sequin patches on a crinkled bonded-paper cape coat. Sonney’s experimental use of materials shines through in the silicone graphic motifs on an elongated white shirt. The pièce de résistance, a delightful basket bag crafted from glass that whimsically resembled a flower vase, paid tribute to the shared sense of humor between Sonney and Elbaz.
In AZ Factory Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2023, Lora Sonney’s collection, a symbiosis of Alber Elbaz’s playful spirit and her ecological sensibility, elevates the meaning of couture, and indeed, fashion as we know it. By championing sustainability and creative expression, this platform paves the way for a future where fashion doesn’t simply wear green but truly embraces it. This is a new era of fashion, where creativity blooms sustainably, nourished by the industrious hands of emerging designers like Lora Sonney.
Read more: Lora Sonney’s debut with AZ Factory set for Paris Haute Couture Week
