Did Bella Hadid Just Make Fashion History?
The spray-on dress that had the world talking.
by STELLA RINGBLOM ★ OCTOBER 27, 2022
Bella Hadid arguably created history within the fashion industry as she closed the Coperni show during Paris Fashion Week. Hadid walked the runway wearing only underwear while covering her chest with one arm, leaving many wondering what was going to happen next. As she made it toward the end of the runway, a team surrounded her and covered her body in spray paint, which eventually turned into a dress.
The substance sprayed on her body was a patented, spray-on fabric developed by a London-based company called Fabrican. This new technique is highly innovative and paves the way for the modernization of fashion. Most often, designers have used it for high-fashion performance purposes. Sébastien Meyer, Coperni’s creative director, found inspiration from this technology for this look. Once spraying on the dress, you can take it off, hang or wash it, or put it back into the bottle of its original solution to regenerate.
However, the focus wasn't supposed to be on the dress but on its creation. It gained new media attention, helping both the brand and Hadid gain more publicity. The concept of spraying fashion onto someone shows the progression designers have made toward sustainability and emphasizes the new role of technology in the fashion world.
After the paint seeped into Hadid’s skin, Coperni’s head of design Charlotte Raymond, completed the look by cutting the fabric right before Hadid exited the show. This nine-minute strut was described as “historic,” considering nothing like this has ever been seen before. Even more impressive, Hadid’s intense schedule during Paris Fashion Week left no time for rehearsal. According to the New York Times, Hadid claimed that she “was so nervous,” but it “was the best moment of [her] life.”
While Hadid has been trending for the past few years, she hasn't always had the spotlight. Being born into the Hadid family, having a famous mom, and being the younger sister of supermodel Gigi Hadid, she has had to work hard to gain the respect of brands, her family, and her audience. The Hadids commonly face backlash for being nepotism babies, but the talent Bella exhibited in this show proves that she came out of her shell without a sense of entitlement and puts a lot of work into what she does.
Coperni hasn't commented on why they picked Hadid to end the show but many predict that it's because she has recently gained an extreme amount of media attention. She has become "America's it girl" this past year, inspiring girls worldwide to explore different fashion trends, adding to the list of reasons she was spotted all over fashion week last month.
Although it's not realistic to spray paint yourself each morning before heading to work or your first class, this new innovative technique will continue to inspire the fashion industry to think outside the box. Everyone, including Hadid herself, was stunned by the performance. Like all media platform claims, Hadid and Copreni made history within the fashion industry and it will be difficult to top something as innovative and beautiful for future shows.
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/02/style/bella-hadid-coperni-paris-fashion-week.html