Ways to Say Black by Swarovski

Text: Mabli Jones

The little black dress or the LBD: fashion’s favourite cliché. It’s the go-with-everything, easy route to chic...where would we be without it?

Ever since Coco Chanel first freed women from the stuffy, constricting clothes of her era, it became an instant classic and has been tirelessly re-invented by every designer since, in every decade and season, creating a long heritage of iconic versions: Chanel’s simple shifts, Audrey Hepburn breakfasting at Tiffany’s in Givenchy, Alaïa’s electrifying cling in the 80s, to more recently, Balmain’s coveted rock'n'roll glamour. The little black dress, if you will, is fashion’s canvas.

This concept is expressed perfectly in Crystallized Swarovski Elements exhibition ‘Ways To Say Black’.  Swarovski’s latest in a long line of exciting collaborations with the fashion world has given 22 of the current most innovative design talents, both established and emerging, the chance to reinvent the LBD in their own signature styles using Swarovski crystals. The showpieces which have been previewed so far demonstrate the range of possibilities the LBD provides, from Lanvin’s delicate grace, 3.1 Philip Lim’s pretty futuristic version, to Givenchy’s directional use of embellishment. The stunning results of the project will be published in a book and displayed in a touring exhibition, starting this Thursday at the Hotel Pozzo di Borgo in the 7th arrondissement, and culminating in the final auction in New York, with proceeds going to the American Cancer Society and La Ligue contre le Cancer.