The first day of Paris Fashion Week’s Spring/Summer 2027 season started and ended with runway shows held far from the areas traditionally associated with haute couture in France’s capital city.
That off-the-beaten-path spirit seemed to translate to the looks spotted near the week’s main venue, Palais de Tokyo, as well as on the streets.
Attendees and fashion lovers embraced effortless Parisian style, pairing pieces crafted by the designers whose shows they attended with thrift-shop finds and accessories from leading luxury houses such as Balenciaga, Prada and Dior. Some also wore personal vintage pieces from their mothers’ or grandmothers’ wardrobes.
Textured variations of black dominated the streets, often speckled with colourful accents. An exception was the Maxhosa Africa show, which turned a narrow street into an explosion of colour. A group of attendees, originally from South Africa, like the designer himself, wore headwear and accessories inspired by the cultural heritage of the Xhosa tribe.
The day ended in the beating heart of contemporary Paris, at Place de la République, where Parisians gather to protest. The Matières Fécales runway show was the first in history to take place in this bustling location. Attendees gathered as Parisians biked home from work and elderly men wrapped up their daily chess matches on nearby benches. There, among the photographers, a few teenage boys stopped to take photos and videos and engage with the fashion crowd.
South Africans, Ayabukwa Magocoba (left) and Ncedo Mkyla (right) attend the Maxhosa Africa show. Ayabukwa is wearing primarily vintage ’90s clothes from her mother.
Parisian Michael Costabrito wearing finds from local thrift stores, using two skirts layered as a dress.
Dina and Otto came from Russia to attend the Maxhosa Africa show. They are wearing styled clothes from Bershka, H&M and Vaquera.
Irina Kro, from New York, wearing Pierre Balmain and Yves Saint Laurent sunglasses for the Vautrait presentation.