THE ROUSTEING ERA : THE KEY CAMPAIGNS

“While we shot these images, I had to smile as I imagined how my adolescent self would have reacted with utter disbelief if someone could have traveled back in time to tell me that one day, I would be in a New York studio watching Steven Klein shoot Cindy, Claudia and Naomi for my Spring 2016 campaign—for those four singular talents have inspired me from day one.

When I was a schoolboy in Bordeaux, it was their editorials that first made clear to me the amazing transformative power of fashion. Still today, many years on, their iconic images are often found amongst the jumble on mood boards in my (and almost every other designer’s) atelier. To say that working with them was a dream come true is absolutely not an exaggeration.

For this campaign, there was never any question of which direction to take. It was obvious that there was no need for any special installation or any type of lighting tricks—Pascal, Steven and I knew that the unique combination of Balmain’s Spring 2016 designs and these powerful women was more than enough. Therefore, lighting is clean and direct, and those three amazing women are front and center.

Watching Cindy, Claudia, Naomi and Steven instinctively work together, I was struck by the confidence, professionalism and grace on display in front of me. There was never any doubt that the final images would be anything but perfect. Looking at them now, I like to think that perhaps these shots might also, someday, form part of some future designer’s mood board.”

Olivier Rousteing 

“My days are like everybody’s: they start too early and end too late. And, in between, it sometimes feels like all I do is rush from one meeting (late) to the next (late). With a schedule like that, the beauty of Paris—which made such an incredible impact upon me when I arrived here as a child and then later, as a young student—has all too often been reduced to just a blur outside a taxi window, a simple backdrop for daily routines, something that no longer even registers.

But things changed for me in 2017. After our national elections, just like so many of my fellow citizens, I began focusing more on what it means to be French and why it is that we choose to remain here—and as part of that examination, I began rediscovering what has always been here, including the magnificence of the streets surrounding me.

This campaign, one of my most personal, is what I called my “Paris Diary.” During two long days and one never-ending night, my team and I covered the city, trekking from arrondissement to arrondissement. Beginning at 44, rue François Premier—Balmain’s historic home—and pausing our journey at some of the French capital’s iconic addresses (Le Palais Royal, Le Saint Sulpice, Le Panthéon, La Place des Victoires…), we captured Balmain’s Fall 2017 offerings, setting members of the diverse and strong Balmain Army in front of the timeless beauty of our Ville Lumière.

I’ve always explained that part of the draw that social media has for me is its unique removal of any filters or middlemen—allowing me to communicate directly with those who are interested in what we are creating. I wanted to photograph this campaign for the same reasons: to have the images directly reflect my vision of Balmain’s latest creations, as well as my love for the singular beauty of the city that I call home.”

Olivier Rousteing 

“As everyone probably has already heard, music is extremely important to me. My collection notes almost always highlight the songs, artists and genres that inspire me, and many of the house’s campaigns have focused on music and musicians.

A few years ago, I’ve found myself obsessing on one special, inescapable—although usually unnoticed—type of music: the ubiquitous notes and beats that accompany almost every moment of our lives. We tend to ignore most of our environment’s background sounds until something suddenly seems out of whack—but I’ve been pushing myself to be more attentive to those notes, working to create a sort of aural inventory of the sounds making up the different parts of my daily soundtrack. These varied tones, bells and beats—slamming doors, beeping games, buzzing motors, clinking coins, dragging feet—when pulled together into unexpected combinations, can help us reflect on the unexpected beauty to be found in the everyday, reminding us of our many changing moods and small joys.

I was excited to learn that Jake and Ludwig shared my fascination with these small, yet powerful daily beats and thrilled to see how they were able to play with the potential of those sounds to create this unique music video for Balmain’s Fall 2018 Campaign. To match the freshness of the sounds, we relied on an array of talents, mixing icons—Milla Jovovich and Daphne Guiness—with a selection of young, daring creators from all parts of the world. Each has the passion, boldness, talent and confidence that make them perfect representatives of today’s modern and inclusive Balmain Army."

Olivier Rousteing 

“The choice of an episodic series made perfect sense to us. After all of our endless nights of endless streaming during lockdown, everyone on the Balmain team was already well aware of the addictive power of a drama series. And I loved how this choice of medium allowed us to blend storytelling, music and fashion in such a seamless manner. Michail, Catherine and Glenn created this one-of-a-kind story and Bradley & Pablo ensured that it was told perfectly. I am particularly pleased that their characters highlight the unique potential of friendship and artistic creation to pull us from dark moments—which is definitely a lesson that many of us learned over the past year. The casting could not have been better. Tommy Dorfman, Ajani Russell and Charles Melton are simply superb. As is Jesse Jo Stark—and that beautiful music of hers was stuck on a non-stop loop inside my head for months.

I love that “Fracture” helped us to reach a much wider public, while allowing those who already know the house a new way of experiencing Balmain. And, as unexpected as this campaign-as-a-series might be, I also love that “Fracture” actually builds upon a long and distinct house history. Pierre Balmain adored using his designs to help tell stories. He worked on the costumes for a multitude of ballet and theatre pieces, and he was responsible for the wardrobes of over fifty European and American studio productions. And, just like us, our founder seems to have had no fear in pushing against the limits of his time. For example, while other Parisian couturiers refused to dress a young Brigitte Bardot, due to fears that their society clients would be uncomfortable seeing house designs on “a vulgar display on the screen,” Pierre Balmain was more than happy to create outfits for some of that star’s most iconic roles. And Balmain’s designs for “The Millionairess”—which definitely accentuated Sophia Loren’s famous curves—might have been one of the reasons why that film was ultimately rated as “not suitable for children.”

Olivier Rousteing