One Dress for Rabih Kayrouz’s AW 2020 Haute Couture

In light of fashion’s recession, the consequence of coronavirus pandemic, the best response to this crisis was: sustainability.

Lebanese designer Rabih Kayrouz was keen on maintaining this concept in his new innovative idea of presenting one dress for AW2020 couture instead of an entire collection, during PFW. A high-end orange dress was enough for Rabih Kayrouz.

In a risky and unique move, the Lebanese designer focused on the craftsmanship of a one dress for AW 2020. However, it was no ordinary red-orange gown, but a link between Beirut and Paris. With 80 meters of orange grosgrain ribbon, and 320 meters of cord and 230 working hours, Rabih Kayrouz presented an upscale piece attesting to the creativity and accuracy of the Lebanese designer, with its intricate latticework and the see-through details revealing Yusra Mohsen’s dancer legs, who moved to the tunes of a song performed by Egyptian star Shadia, in the 5-min film directed by Nasri Sayegh.

Rabih Kayrouz introduced us to the stages of designing a gown, from sketch to execution, with the orange cord that linked Rabih’s atelier in Beirut (320 Rue Gouraud) to his atelier in Paris (38 Boulevard Raspail), where the orange ribbon turned to a Haute Couture dress, before it goes through life on the dancers’ body.