In a season where many brands opted out of fashion shows, Hermès gave not one, but three live performances. Stretching across three fashion capitals, Hermès debuted their Fall Winter 2021 collection, Fashion Triptych, in a series of animated spectacles in New York, Paris, and Shanghai. Sébastien Lifshitz directed the installment’s film, with the first act set in New York. Before a backdrop of signature Hermès orange curtains, performers clad in matching black and brown turtlenecks, midi skirts, and leather knee-high boots and belts staged a dynamic group dance choreographed by American artist Madeline Hollander.

“I wanted this three-act performance to be our way of keeping a record of these extraordinary times where the situation demands more of us than a simple runway show,” said Nadège Vanhée-Cybulski, Artistic Director of Hermès Women’s ready-to-wear. “I wanted a film directed by an artist with a feel for the crossover of genres and disciplines. Not a film about fashion, nor about dance, but a film about us all and all the ways we can and must continue to reinvent ourselves.”

The brand took to the Paris runways to display the full collection. Strutting through an obstacle course of stacked orange boxes, models donned sumptuous leather-accented ensembles. The collection focused on outerwear in a vast array of silhouettes and mediums: waist-defining cinched parkas; wool-collared bomber-esque jackets with leather details; an elegant beige-and-white wool overcoat; and a variety of fringed ponchos and scarves that translate easily to indoor wear.

Fringed suede was a common element throughout the collection, adding movement to knee-length skirts and dresses. The collection stayed true to the brand’s simple decadence, sticking to a palette of warm neutrals with pops of deep red and denim. An infusion of subtle patterns added intrigue — intricate embroidery on a twillaine zipped jacket and flowing smocked dress gave the impression of etched pottery. Understated but never stale, Hermès presented a quintessential fall wardrobe marked by decadent craftsmanship.

The final act came to a head in Shanghai, where performers outfitted in the collection’s geometric-patterned knitwear and leather pants carried out mesmerizing interpretive dance choreography.

“Three acts, the common thread of which is the orange box, tell the story of how a collection comes into being and is turned into a performance through the prism of different cultures,” said Lifshitz. “All of this in an era of travel restrictions and limited interaction. It’s utopian in a way.”