Opening Haute Couture Fashion Week Fall-Winter 2026, Daniel Roseberry wondered about an issue that is shadowing the creative industry: can artificial intelligence design Haute Couture? The entire catwalk is built like a plunge into the dark area of imagination. There, craftsmanship becomes a counter-argument to the growing capabilities of technology.
The first designs put the human body into a state of near metamorphosis. Latex jackets sprout inflatable tentacles, corsets are fashioned from silicone with a texture reminiscent of jelly, while many dresses glow to the rhythm of the wearer’s movements. Every detail leads to a strange feeling, as if the body is evolving into another life form.
Daniel Roseberry said he still maintains the habit of sketching all designs by hand. However, the recent process of grading fashion students’ graduation projects made him think more about the role of AI in creativity. As more and more designs are created with the help of artificial intelligence, assessing the capabilities of a young designer becomes difficult, because viewers no longer know what is a personal touch and what is the result of an algorithm. Because of that concern, this collection is seen as a direct dialogue with AI instead of an attitude of denying technology.
If high-end tailoring techniques are always associated with silk, lace or feathers, Schiaparelli this season brought into the atelier materials that rarely appear in Haute Couture: latex, silicon, dried flowers, seashells and fish scales. This combination reflects the spirit of the current moment, when the lines between the digital world and craftsmanship are increasingly blurred. Roseberry does not try to separate these two extremes, but lets them collide right on the surface of the outfit.
The collection therefore has the appearance of a laboratory rather than a fashion show in the traditional sense. Viscous materials, surfaces reminiscent of biological tissue, deformed structures and anatomical details appear throughout the show. Prominent among them is the fish’s back gills molded from skin-colored silicon, an image that evokes contemporary debates about artificial bodies, simulated images and the trend of physical transformation.
The visual language continues to be pushed to the extreme through bulging shapes and light-reflecting surfaces. The molded jacket and corset stay solid, creating an air-filled feel, reminiscent of the Allen Jones-inspired chest armor that made a splash on the Met Gala red carpet. Meanwhile, rubber dresses that hug the body move with each step, making the material seem to have its own life.
Even designs with a classic appearance contain a sense of insecurity. The blush pink evening dress with pearls performed by Amelia Gray still retains the familiar shape of a prom dress, but the color and surface structure create a different beauty, evoking more feelings than nostalgia. The collection’s color palette was developed from the visual world of artist Matthew Barney’s “Cremaster Cycle,” a series of works known for its visual language surrounding the body, biology and transformation. To realize this idea, Schiaparelli also cooperated with a craft workshop in Paris that specializes in making surreal silicone dolls for the film industry, bringing props-making techniques into the Haute Couture creation process.
Placing the collection in the vein of Elsa Schiaparelli’s legacy, Daniel Roseberry believes that Haute Couture will lose its vitality if it only pursues one-dimensional beauty. According to him, high fashion always needs to retain elements that make fashionistas stop, whether it is inspiration from the animal world, body structure or materials that are outside the scope of Haute Couture such as latex and silicon. This perspective also resonates with the opening of the exhibition “Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art” at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, recalling that the spirit of Surrealism questioned the boundary between reality and virtuality long before algorithms and artificial intelligence appeared.
Lesson: Hoang Bao – Fashion Columnist
