For his blockbuster men’s show back in June, Rick Owens invited 200 students and models to walk his runway, forming one, big “army of love”. Now, for his SS25 women’s show, he’s continuing the tradition, packing the catwalk with scores and scores of his beloved fashion community. The decision to stage such ambitious catwalks was a reaction to his AW24 shows, modest affairs held for a select group of people in the American designer’s home. “Holding the previous season’s show in my house with a reduced audience ended up being an act of exclusion,” said the designer in show notes, “instead of the observance of respect in the face of our current wars that I had intended.”

Yesterday’s Hollywood show followed in the footsteps of the earlier men’s collection, with Rick describing the showbiz town as “the boulevard of vice I gleefully ran to to find my people, weirdos and freaks living in a world Lou Reed described in “Walk on the Wild Side.” And – as we know by now – Hollywood loves a good sequel, so scroll down for everything that went down at Rick’s second ode to tinseltown.

CARDI WAS EARLY

Shows typically run late because they’re waiting for celebrity guests to show up – which they eventually do, fashionably late. Cardi B, however, was one of the first to step onto the Palais De Tokyo’s terrace and take her seat, as the sun finally broke through the clouds and it stopped pissing it down for the first time since PFW kicked off.

Cardi is of course a bit of a Rick Owens stan, having buckled a pair of pink AW22 boots up her legs in the video for “Like What (Freestyle)”, but this is the first time she’s actually come to his show – adding it in to her schedule after turning up to Balmain, Rabanne and Mugler. For Rick’s show, the new mum turned up looking like a Star Wars character, wearing a brown felted wool gown and matching cape with spiked shoulders.

THE GIANT CAST WAS BACK

Just like his men’s show back in June, Rick reached out to the wider fashion community to fill his catwalk for SS25, sending multiple groups of similar looks down the runway. “I have once again asked all the fashion schools in Paris to send us students and faculty, to walk in the show as an expression of unity and reliance on one another,” said the designer before the show. Also trying their hands at modelling this season were employees in Rick’s company Owenscorp, plus his usual cast of collaborators, Hannah Rose Dalton from Fecal Matter, the photographer Kristina Nagel, and Allanah Starr, who Rick described as “one of the grande dames of the trans community from NY to Paris.” 

A SPLASH OF COLOUR

As the show opened, it looked like Rick was going to rehash his grand SS25 menswear show like for like, but with all black looks instead of white. But not long into the show came a series of pieces which broke free of the designer’s limited palette. First was a sculptural, padded bandeau, which came layered under a billowing chiffon cape, both of which had been plastered with an absinthe-green leopard print, as well as a similar style presented in python.

AWARD SEASON RENEGADES

Later on came a series of dramatic strapless gowns with fishtail hems which were crafted from denim and brushed with gold metallic paint – ideal for Hollywood renegades come awards season. Described by Rick in show notes as Goddess gowns with “a tarnished gold megacrust coating”, the denim dresses are produced in Italy’s Venetia region, handmade in small batches to reduce water waste. After those dresses, a number of ombré cocktail styles also arrived on the catwalk, which came finished with a swathe of fabric wrapped around the torso like a cloud.

A PETAL PROCESSION

To add to the atmosphere of the show, as models walked the runway, petals rained down on them from above. The added touch was provided by cloaked figures on the roof of the Palais de Tokyo, and really tied together the procession-like atmosphere of the Hollywood extravaganza.

SAFETY IN NUMBERS

Some might question Rick’s decision of sending multiple groups of the same look down the runway, but there is method to his madness. “Expressing our individuality is great, but sometimes we need to embrace our commonalities,” he said before the show. “Especially in the face of the peak intolerance we are experiencing in the world right now.” In Rick Owens’ vision of Hollywood, there’s safety in numbers, and finding a community of like-minded people, like he did, might just set you free.