The models tumbled on the runway to make a commentary on the absurdity and rigidity of elite fashion. (Photos: Instagram/@beate.karlsson) A model struts on the runway and then falls. It is not unexpected; such incidents are far too common during fashion shows. But, what quickly happens is that another model takes a tumble, followed by one more. Soon, all of them practically slip and crawl. It is like a domino effect. What could have caused it — the slippery floor or the swanky heels? Or was it a catwalk nightmare come true? Neither.
It was pretty much a social statement made through fashion. The aforementioned incident happened at the recently-concluded Milan Fashion Week. While such events are largely understood to be an elite affair with connoisseurs making up the audience, Beate Karlsson, the creative director of Florence-based AVAVAV, designed her debut show in such a way that her models intentionally tripped while walking on the runway.
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The New York Post quipped that it was like taking “fall fashion to new heights”. It stated in a report that the show was a satirical take on the fashion industry’s “obsession with status”, and that the ‘Filthy Rich’ collection comprised “knock-offs” of luxury logos redesigned with ‘AV’ along with caps that read, ‘cash cow’. Karlsson also made a necklace from three Rolex watches.
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The logic was explained in an Instagram post, which read, “@beate.karlsson has devoted herself to escapism, embracing a vulgar style with one core focus — looking rich. At Milan Fashion Week, the runway debut presents a collection that plays with fashion’s fixation of status.”
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It also quoted Karlsson as saying, “Like many others, I’ve craved money for the past year, everywhere I turn it’s part of the discussion. As a result, I want to look rich, feel rich and I want to take it to an outrageous level.
“As silly as it may sound, I’ve enjoyed my fake wealth in this tough climate. I wanted to do a parody of a fashion show to go with the pathetic theme of this collection, and of fashion’s extreme superficiality, at a time when so many fake richness, but risk to fall down hard.”
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Karlsson was also quoted as telling Vogue, “It’s so easy in this generation to fake and filter parts of our lives on social media, but all of this can go away so easily. Falling shows this. The fall makes you lose face when you hit the floor, reality catches you right there.”
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She told the outlet that she “wanted to poke fun at the self-seriousness of the industry”, to remember the runway shows from the 2000s wherein models would fall.
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