Hermes goes to Russia

French designer Jean-Paul Gaultier has reached a comfortable stride at Hermes, the luxury goods maker that handed him the reins of its ready-to-wear division three seasons ago.


At the Hermes Autumn/Winter ready-to-wear show in Paris he tapped into the Russian spirit blowing across catwalks for an opulent collection of shearling coats and buttery leather gowns accessorized with fur toques, reminiscent of the one Julie Christie wore in the classic film "Doctor Zhivago."

It was just the ticket for warding off the Siberian cold that has gripped Paris for the last 10 days.

Geometric red and black designs on a cream sweater evoked the clean lines of the 1920s Russian Constructivist art movement, but belted jackets in reversed crocodile would have been unthinkable in the Communist former Soviet Union.

British model Jade Parfitt, wearing a black boilersuit and peaked cap, closed the show by flamboyantly swigging a glass of vodka and smashing it in front of astonished guests.

- REUTERS