Sidaction Gala Closes Paris Couture Week With Hunter Schafer, Kelly Rutherford
Paris Couture Week closed on a high note on Thursday with “Le Gala de la Mode,” the annual Sidaction fundraising dinner that drew fashion’s finest and friends in support of the fight against AIDS.
“This is actually our little Met Gala, in a way, because it’s the only moment in France where we gather fashion, music, cinema, international couture,” said Ami founder and creative director Alexandre Mattiussi. “It’s a good moment for everyone. It’s always a good vibe.”
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The designer was on the official calendar during men’s week.
“I’m still on my little cloud,” he said of the warm reception his collection received, and added that showroom sales have been strong.
Mattiussi regularly supports the cause, attending Sidaction each year and AmfAR events as well. “It’s a great moment for awareness,” he said. “Great progress has been made in science, so we can say that today we are in a better place than we were before. But we should never, never forget where we come from and continue to fight.”
The industry turned out in force for the evening, with guests including designers Iris van Herpen, Elie Top, Willy Chavarria, and Agnès Troublé, better known as Agnès B.; director Jim Jarmusch, along with French actors Eddy de Pretto, Nadia Tereszkiewcz and “Gossip Girl” star Hugo Becker.
For Kévin Germanier, who was coming to the Sidaction dinner for the fifth time, the evening was a nice way to wrap up the back-to-back men’s and couture weeks.
“Everyone is still stressed, but a little bit less stressed than usual. And I feel like people are more willing to connect because they don’t have to rush,” he said. “It’s really fun.”
To him, this edition had a surreal touch as he was fresh off his 6 p.m. couture debut when he arrived for the dinner across town at 7:30 p.m. “I don’t realize I just did a show like an hour ago. It’s so weird,” he said, admitting a flood of post-show tears. That was not his only mad dash of sorts, he said, adding that he only had two months to prepare the collection after learning he was accepted to the official calendar.
Previously showing during the ready-to-wear season, he viewed being accepted into the rarefied world of couture as an honor and a bigger responsibility. “I really wanted to show attention to details and refine, because it’s easy to do big, but can you do haute couture clothes that the client will actually buy?” he said.
He had his answer before even sitting down for dinner: “I already got an order, so it’s good.”
This year’s gala included an homage to American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, who died of the disease in 1989. Despite medical progress in treatments and promising developments toward a cure, the organizers were keen to highlight the need to continue the fight and remember those lost to AIDS.
“There are a lot of people that died from AIDS in fashion,” Sidaction ambassador Jean Paul Gaultier said, adding that includes personal friends and colleagues over the years. “So it’s a way of remembering.”
Named ambassador for the fundraiser in 2020, he has been devoted to its efforts, in particular the gala serving as the unofficial couture week closing event. Over 700,000 euros were collected for this 22nd edition, according to French media reports.
Though Gaultier has stepped down from designing, his house has been enlisting guest designers and presented a show helmed by Ludovic de Saint Sernin Wednesday night.
The collection got the veteran designer’s stamp of approval for its creativity. “It was very good, which I love, and he did very well in his own way,” he added.
It was a sentiment shared by a couture client, according to de Saint Sernin, who took a bow in a striking corseted look. “It was literally sold off my back,” he revealed.
As guests sat down to enjoy a dinner imagined by three-Michelin-starred chef Fabien Ferré, Gaultier reminded guests it was important to “ensure love remains always something positive.”
“For joy, for love, against AIDS,” he concluded as a troupe of cancan dancers began a rousing routine by choreographer Blanca Li between the tables.
Between courses, guests repaired to the secluded courtyard between the arcades of the Pavillon Vendôme for fresh air.
“I’m so proud to be here tonight,” said Hunter Schafer, sporting a vintage Gaultier look she declared “absolutely stunning.”
Kelly Rutherford has become a Paris Fashion Week fixture, and hit several shows during the two weeks including Dior, Schiaparelli and Rahul Mishra, just to name a few.
She made her mark by starting a series of elevator selfies featuring her looks, which gained momentum. “But I don’t even know how it happened,” she joked of now receiving bucketloads of fashion show invites.
“It’s such a blessing to be invited to the shows, and such an extraordinary, beautiful experience,” she said.
Rutherford is also consistent about supporting the cause, having attended AmfAR events in Cannes and Palm Beach in recent months.
Victor Weinsanto will show on the ready-to-wear calendar in March, but will attend Dubai Fashion Week before that. It’s the eighth time he has attended the event in UAE.
“I love being there,” he said. “It’s not how people think. It’s really, you have a lot of different kinds of people, and this is what I like.”
Weinsanto said his parents are longtime supporters of Sidaction, and he too has been involved as long as he can remember. He’s hopeful that science is close to a cure.
“But with what is happening right now in the world it’s kind of scary, so it’s a mix between I’m happy to be here and to be supportive, and also scared for everyone that is living with HIV and AIDS,” he said.
Having the fashion community behind the cause gives him hope.
“Diner de la Mode, I love this spirit,” he said, noting that his Weinsanto line is a young brand. “OK, so my house can’t buy a table for now even if I would love to, but I love the fact that brands can support…So it’s really a nice, beautiful thing that everyone comes together to join.”
Before the traditional lucky draw, French singer Lucky Love took to the stage to sing a take on “Because the Night,” the 1978 song written by Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith.
“Because the night belongs to love,” sang Love, accompanied by a gospel trio. “Because the night belongs to lovers.”
Launch Gallery: Hunter Schafer, John Paul Gaultier, and More at the Dîner de la Mode Sidaction
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