>> In the past week alone, three brands have held shows in China — Valentino and Marc by Marc Jacobs in Hong Kong and Burberry in Beijing — but Burberry's was hardly a straightforward runway show.
For its first event in China in 10 years (and in celebration of a new Beijing flagship), Burberry gathered more than 1,000 guests in front of the massive stage at Beijing Television Center last night to showcase its Fall 2011 collection. Virtual image technologies — holograms, projections, and animations — were used on the runway, creating the illusion of models disappearing, switching looks, or transforming into snow clouds as they walked by one another. Some models were even joined by holograms of themselves.
Christopher Bailey, a heavy proponent of pushing the envelope with technology, said yesterday morning: “I love the vehicle of technology. I love using it as a platform in which to communicate the ideas, the attitude, the spirit of the company. Sometimes as an industry, perhaps we think it is not a legitimate channel in which to speak to people. I just don’t really agree with it. Fashion is supposed to be about making things relevant. Yes, it is luxury. Yes, it is aspiration. Yes, it is supposed to be inspiring. But I think there is nothing more inspiring than talking digitally, because you can get attitude, you can get music, you can get sound, you can get video and movement. You can actually articulate so much of your brand using this medium.”
Highlights from the show in the video above.
