Haute couture at its best is a dazzling array of possibilities. It’s also increasingly an artform being expressed through the medium of film, with in-person fashion shows still off-bounds thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic. Japanese designer Yuima Nakazato has embraced new techniques both inspired and showcased by model-turned-activist Lauren Wasser, who lost both her legs to toxic shock syndrome. Meanwhile, Italy’s Sofia Crociani finds inspiration in cognitive experiments from the 1950s and ’60s that tracked the effect of LSD on spiders.
Haute couture, summer 2021: A fashion laboratory
