Thursday 27 January 2022

Celia Kritharioti's New Couture Collection is a Paean to a Propitious Post-Pandemic Future

Backstage in Paris at the couture show of Greek designer Celia Kritharioti, a model strikes a pose in a jaunty, scintillating creation from the SS22 collection. All photographs and cover picture by Ell Ioannou for DAM
Celia Kritharioti's new Spring/Summer 2022 couture collection was presented at a live show and was one of the highlights of Paris Couture Week. We go backstage to see the celebratory, vividly-hued gowns that are a paean to a happier future post-pandemic. Story by Jeanne-Marie Cilento. Photography by Elli Ioannou 

Brilliant colour, fluidity and volume
were themes of the show
GREEK couturier Celia Kritharioti brought brilliant colour and glimmering gowns to the runway for her latest haute couture collection. 

The designer was keen to bring a sense of positivity and happiness to her Spring/Summer 2022 collection as an antidote to the past two years enduring a world dominated by Covid-19. 

She chose to have a physical show while many other designers presented their collections digitally with short films and photographs. 

However, there is nothing like the real thing with the excited buzz of chatter and preparation before the show backstage and the audience waiting in anticipation beside the runway. 

The show was held in the Saut du Loup space at Paris' Palais de Tokyo. The models all looked like beautiful, brightly-hued butterflies in their gowns. which ran from jazzy short cocktail dresses to elegant and voluminous ballgowns. 

Embroidery was a highlight of the collection created by Kritharioti's specialist artisans. The colour palette ranged from blue, lime and chartreuse to yellow, orange and fuchsia pink. Long capes were embellished with ostrich feathers while sparkling motifs, transparency and cut-outs enhanced the figure-hugging designs. 
 
Celia Kritharioti was keen to bring a sense of positivity and happiness to her collection as an antidote to the past two years enduring a world dominated by Covid-19

Backstage the models get ready
before the runway show
The designer's atelier is based in Athens and her fashion house is the oldest in Greece, founded in 1904 by her family. 

As a child she was surrounded by all of the accoutrements of a fashion business including textiles, seamstresses and embroiderers and later travelled to Paris for shows like Dior and Chanel. 

Although Celeia Kritharioti went on to study business and economics, it wasn't long before she was drawn back into fashion with a particular focus on haute couture which she sees as an art. 

Today, she has a fashion house that encompasses exquisite bridal gowns, ready-to-wear and the couture dresses that are worn on the red-carpet by high-profile women from Gwyneth Paltrow and Heidi Klum to Jennifer Lopez and Lady Gaga.  

Celia Kritharioti first presented her collections in Paris five years ago and since then her shows have been outstanding  for their combination of both exuberance and elegance.


Scroll down to see more backstage and the the runway show or tap pictures for a full-screen slideshow
























































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