Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood Spring 2026 Collection
The mood at L’Institut de France was pure euphoria — a sun-drenched dream laced with punk defiance. Under the glass dome, models emerged one by one onto a raised, coliseum-like runway, dressed for an imaginary beach where the Renaissance meets The Flintstones. There was laughter, applause, and even a hint of nostalgia.
For Spring 2026, Andreas Kronthaler was chasing happiness — something elusive, precious, and achingly human in a chaotic world. “I was thinking about things that make me happy,” he said backstage. “The beach in Sicily, the friends we’ve had around the house for years, and the sunflowers outside our London studio. Every morning I see them — they’re incredible. They just make you happy.”
That sense of joy — immediate, sensual, and a little absurd — pulsed through the entire collection. Kronthaler titled it “Boudoir,” after the house’s new fragrance that debuted in November, inspired by rare Versailles Osmothèque perfumes that both he and Vivienne Westwood adored. It was a fitting tribute — intimate, eccentric, and alive with memory.
The show opened with playful beachwear that blurred time and context: toga-like sarongs cut from raw linen; shell-pink chiffon wraps; sun-bleached stripes slung low on the hips. Then, slowly, the collection transitioned toward Westwood’s irreverent codes — slouchy, punk-inflected tailoring; bustier dresses slashed and reassembled; baroque prints one might find at an Italian market; and gender-fluid knitwear that clung to the skin like sea mist.
The casting was nothing short of iconic: Simonetta Gianfelici, Heidi Klum, Isabeli Fontana, and Carmen Kass — women who once walked for Westwood in the ’90s — returned to the runway, radiant and free. They didn’t just model the clothes; they embodied them, walking with the kind of ease and humor that defined Vivienne’s world.
“It’s like a dressing room — but also the beach,” Kronthaler explained. “It’s about joy, about wanting to get dressed up for the fun of it. Because we live in times of such great change.”
