Matthew Williams' debut at Givenchy A new beginning for the French fashion house

Matthew Williams loves metal – an element that had already made the fortune of his first brand, 1019 Alyx 9SM with the famous rollercoaster buckle and that was the fil rouge of his debut collection for Givenchy since Nick Knight's first teaser-campaign shot for the brand. The presentation of the new collection of the fashion house was one of the key events of Paris Fashion Week SS21 and, just ninety days after its entry from Givenchy, Williams gave a sharp turn to the brand's aesthetic – taking it away from the muffled world of Clare Waight Keller and giving it a new edginess that recalls the days of Alexander McQueen's turbulent regency. Givenchy's relaunch plan wanted by the LVMH group served to bring back to the crest of the wave a brand that, although brought back to the top by Riccardo Tisci in his twelve years of creative direction, had plunged into an all too mainstream position within the luxury market falling in recent years into a kind of golden anonymity – a state of inertia to which Williams and Lotta Volkova , for better or worse, they gave a vigorous jolt yesterday.

From a general point of view, however, Matthew Williams' debut collection at Givenchy remains one of the best and most exciting of this Paris Fashion Week thanks to what is perhaps the main dowry of the American designer, that is to know how to focus on the product rather than the general mood, producing desirable items, on which the personality and personal touch of the designer are felt.