Paris fashion week starts with a rooftop catwalk
The number of black models on the Paris catwalks can be expected to come under scrutiny.
PARIS (AFP) - Paris fashion week on Tuesday got off to a charmingly chaotic start with a rooftop catwalk show at which fashionistas played spot the model .
Fashion watchers who trekked up the eight flights to the top of Paris s famed Galeries Lafayette department store were rewarded with clear views of the Eiffel Tower on a sunny September day.
But the models at Franco-Cambodian designer Christine Phung s first ever show were almost impossible to glimpse as they walked in a path hastily cleared among the milling crowd before being moved to an even less visible corner of the roof terrace.
"It was a lovely spot to hold a fashion show -- and there was a great view of Paris -- but unfortunately most people couldn t see anything (of the collection)," lifestyle blogger Marino Vizza told AFP.
Brought up in France by a Cambodian father and French mother, Phung s dual heritage is reflected in her use of printed silks.
Her spring/summer 2014 "Liquid Dilusion" collection featured a delicate palette of metallic grey, silver, white and ecru as well as black and ultramarine.
Looks inspired by "the possibilities of water" included billowing silk trousers teamed with a sheer halter neck top and pleated dresses and skirts.
Of around 10 looks in the collection, one was worn by a black model and two by Asian models.
The number of black models on the Paris catwalks can be expected to come under scrutiny this week following a blistering attack on the fashion world by models Naomi Campbell and Iman and model-turned-activist Bethann Hardison.
