Palladium metal incorporated into a dress by Hussein Chalayan

Hussein Chalayan’s fall 2012 show today will feature two dresses with graphic, sculptural necklines made of palladium. For the uninitiated, palladium is a lustrous white metal — the latest to be designated a precious metal as of 2009 — known for its strength despite its lightweight nature. Chalayan said the two designs are a “teaser” to his new multiseason partnership with the International Palladium Board, or IPB, and its new fashion program, Palladium Visions, which launched with a fine jewelry program recently during London Fashion Week.

If the IPB has anything to do with it, you’ll be hearing much more about palladium and its many uses — from industrial design to fashion. IPB has plans to roll out several fashion-driven partnerships in the next year, the first of which is with Chalayan, for whom technology and mechanics are a signature design motif. “It was a very natural gravitation for me,” said Chalayan, noting that he’s worked with metals in the past but didn’t know much about palladium until this project. “Think about aircraft. Aircraft have to be light and strong. Palladium is interesting [when] used for stuff that’s supposed to have the appearance of something heavy but is quite light.” Chalayan backed the metal with plates of neon Perspex, whose “color oozes out from behind.”

China in the Front Row

China is the new key market - The strategy for conquering the Chinese public this season has moved to the front rows of the catwalk shows: Chinese celebrities are ever more present alongside top buyers and the editors of the most famous magazines in the world.

The actress Yuanyuan Gao was at the Max Mara show during Milan Fashion Week, while in October Zhou Xun – Karl Lagerfeld has called her “a mélange between a young Coco Chanel and Zizi Jeanmaire” – was in the front row of the Chanel show.

Last March, in Paris, Louis Vuitton hosted Fan Bingbing in the front row at its show. The actress then wore an Louis Vuitton outfit at Cannes 2011 for the galà Amfar.

We wait to see how many celebs will be arriving from the Far East to be present at Paris Fashion Week, which opened today.

Source:Vogue.it - Marta Casadei