Abstract

Since the first appearance with his brand Vetements at the Paris Fashion Week in 2014 and his successive takeover of the French maison Balenciaga in 2015, designer Demna has represented a controversial figure in the industry, capable of merging stereotypically luxurious pieces with direct references to pop culture and politics. This article analyses the imagery and the communication strategies of his two brands by providing a revised reading of the grotesque theory to fit the contemporary climate. Previously associated with a regenerative power capable of contrasting the status quo, the grotesque returns in the new millennium shrouded in an aura of gloom. Demna intercepts the anxiety that arises from the environmental crises, our poorly regulated relationship with technology and social media, and the rightward populist drift that has been spreading in Europe and USA, and distills it in his collections, fashion shows and campaigns. In order to explore the dark, thickly encoded work of the designer, the theoretical framework of this article combines a rigorous account of the grotesque canon to postmodernist theory, for their shared interest for low and popular culture as the unofficial voice that mocks and undermines power structures.

摘要

自 2014 年携品牌 Vetements 首次亮相巴黎时装周，以及 2015 年接连收购法国品牌 Balenciaga 以来，设计师 Demna 一直是业界备受争议的人物，能够将传统奢华单品与流行文化直接融合在一起和政治。本文通过对怪诞理论的修订解读来分析他的两个品牌的图像和传播策略，以适应当代气候。此前，这种怪诞与一种能够与现状形成鲜明对比的再生力量联系在一起，但在新千年笼罩在阴郁气氛中的怪诞又回归了。Demna 拦截了因环境危机、我们与技术和社交媒体监管不善的关系而产生的焦虑，以及在欧洲和美国蔓延的右翼民粹主义倾向，并在他的系列、时装秀和宣传活动中得到体现。为了探索设计师黑暗而厚重的作品，本文的理论框架结合了对怪诞经典的严格描述和后现代主义理论，因为他们对低俗和流行文化的共同兴趣是嘲笑和破坏权力的非官方声音结构。