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Coinciding with Taylor Swift, Sarah Burton embarked on her Showgirl period. In her second collection as Givenchy designer, Burton amplified the drama with collars adorned with sparkling rhinestones across the collarbone area, rich peach-colored maribou plumes, a compact and striking evening dress in bold crimson leather, and supermodel Naomi Campbell in a tailored tuxedo blazer draped over a barely-there lace trim bra.

Forging a Unique Path

Burton's role at Givenchy less than a year, but the longtime associate of Alexander McQueen has quickly defined a distinctive character for the brand and for herself. The Givenchy label, the spiritual home of the actress Audrey Hepburn and the timeless black dress, has a pristine heritage of sophistication that stretches from Paris to Hollywood, but it is a modest entity as a business. Previous designers at the house had primarily focused on streetwear and practical metallic details, but Burton is reintroducing the sophistication.

"My intention was for it to be seductive and intimate and to show skin," Burton noted following the presentation. "To strengthen women, we often turn to masculine elements, but I wanted to explore women's emotional depth, and the act of dressing and undressing."

Subtle seduction was evident, too, in an evening shirt in butter soft white leather. "All women vary," Burton commented. "Sometimes when I’m casting, a model puts on an outfit and I immediately sense that she doesn’t want to wear a heel. Therefore, I adjust the outfit."

Return to Glamorous Events

Givenchy is re-establishing itself in high-profile occasion wear. Burton has dressed actor Timothée Chalamet in a pale yellow formal suit at the Oscars, and model Kaia Gerber in a vintage-feel ballerina gown of dark lace at the Venice Film Festival.

Schiaparelli’s Artistic Comeback

Schiaparelli, the surrealist fashion label, has been resurgent under the American designer Daniel Roseberry. Next year, the V&A will host the inaugural UK Schiaparelli showcase, looking at the work of designer Elsa Schiaparelli and the house she founded.

"You don’t buy Schiaparelli, it becomes a collection," Roseberry remarked backstage.

Those who don Schiaparelli require no exhibition to tell them that these garments are artistic. Art-adjacency is good for the bottom line – garments carry art gallery price tags, with outerwear priced from approximately £5,000. And profits, as well as profile, is rising. The location of the presentation was the Centre Pompidou in Paris, an additional signal of how intimately this brand is linked to art.

Returning to Historic Partnerships

Roseberry reexamined one of Elsa’s most famous collaborations with surrealist master Dalí, the 1938 “Tears” dress which will be in the V&A show. "This focused on returning to the origins of the house," he said.

The shredded details in the initial design were painted on, but for the contemporary take Roseberry tore into the silk crepe itself. In both designs, the rips are eerily suggestive of skinned skin.

Eerie Details and Playful Threat

There is an edge of menace at the Schiaparelli house – Elsa described her mannequins, with their angular shoulders and cinched waists, as her plaything troops – as well as a cheerful embrace of wit. Fingernail-inspired fasteners and metallic nose ornaments as earrings are the visual grammar of the label. The standout feature of this event: fake fur crafted from paintbrushes.

Surrealist elements appear throughout contemporary fashion. Eggshell-inspired heels – treading carefully, geddit? – were a sellout at the brand Loewe. Dalí-inspired melting clocks have graced the runway at Moschino. But Schiaparelli leads in this area, and Roseberry commands it.

"Garments from Schiaparelli possess a heightened theatricality which captivates everyone present," he stated. A scarlet ensemble was sliced with a geometric insert of flesh-toned mesh that was positioned approximately where a pair of knickers should, in a head-swivelling illusion of nakedness. The interplay of functionality and spectacle is all part of the show.

American Creatives in the French Capital

A merry-go-round of designer debuts has introduced two New York favorites to the Parisian scene. Designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez have departed from their Proenza Schouler label they created in 2002 to helm Loewe, the Spanish leather goods brand that grew into a $1.5bn (£1.1bn) alpha name under the direction of Jonathan Anderson before his transition to Dior.

The American creatives seemed ecstatic to be in Paris. Vibrant Ellsworth Kelly hues brought a cheerful pop art vibe to the sophisticated art intelligence for which Loewe is currently known. Vivid yellow slip-ons swayed their tassels like the hem of Josephine Baker; a crimson peplum blazer had the bold reflective shapes of a tomato sauce container. And an evening dress disguised as a just-out-of-the-shower towel wrap, fluffy as a freshly laundered bath sheet, captured the sweet spot where clever design meets fashion fun.