Thursday, October 23rd, 2008...5:39 pm
Viktor & Rolf’s Digital Runway

The s/s 2009 Fashion Week season will end on Nov. 3, with Moscow pulling up the rear. If you didn’t make it to any traditional runways (like me), never fear. Viktor & Rolf will come to you.
The French pair’s show was presented exclusively and delightfully online: The Viktor & Rolf s/s 2009 collection, “Funny Face.” Complete with as many as 12 Shalom Harlows appearing on the digital runway at a given time.
I’ve read several assumptions as to WHY the designers, known for extravagant shows, went digital this year. They vaguely told WWD, “It is a take on what a fashion show might be in the future.”
My first thought upon hearing the news: That it was one of the most gutsy green moves I’ve seen in the high-fashion world yet!
Several years ago I worked on a book profiling corporate sustainability pioneers. Michael Hendrix of Tricycle Inc., which reduces significant amounts of waste in the interior design industry by creating digital carpet samples, added this perspective:
“Tricycle is part of a larger trend that is finding new vehicles for experiences, and we’re using the digital world to get there. We used to exchange money, but now we use credit cards. We used to buy records, but now we download music. It doesn’t change the final experiece — it’s still rock+roll! We live in a time in which we can have familiar interactions through new mediums. … The digital era allows us to have more sustainable interactions.”
Perhaps sustainability wasn’t V&R’s motivation at the end of the day. But so what? Here’s to the future of fashion!
(I must note: Pulling off this video and website allegedly cost just as much as a typical show. And it employed less people. But think of all the other excesses that were saved… swag bags!)
Leave a Reply