With grand gowns, razor-sharp tailoring, real couples and the Danish Boys’ Choir, Soeren Le Schmidt transformed Copenhagen’s Kongens Have into the setting for his biggest show to date – and invited the entire city along for the occasion
There is something wonderfully old-fashioned about dressing up. Not simply getting dressed, but dressing up: the ceremony of it, the anticipation, the delicious possibility of being just that little bit overdressed. It is a pleasure Soeren Le Schmidt understands intimately. His world has long encompassed gala gowns, bridalwear, and razor-sharp tailoring – clothes made not to disappear into everyday life, but to mark its biggest moments. For his latest collection, the Danish designer decided to stop withholding that instinct and indulge it completely.
The starting point was deceptively simple: "Let's dress up." "I wanted to celebrate the joy of getting dressed, of making an entrance, of dressing for a special moment," says Le Schmidt. "And to create a collection that really embraces glamour, tailoring, and the transformative power of fashion." And so, on a September evening in Copenhagen, he did exactly that – on a larger scale than ever before.
Kavalergangen in Kongens Have became the runway for Le Schmidt's biggest show to date, the garden's avenues and enormous trees providing a suitably romantic backdrop for some 48 looks. More importantly, the setting allowed him to throw open the doors, or rather, the garden gates. Instead of fashion week's typically tightly controlled guest list, the public was invited to watch alongside industry insiders. "Fashion should be something you can experience together," he said. "Kongens Have allows us to do that."