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Top 10 Shows of the Season

After a fashion month where real clothes largely ruled over high concept, BoF's editors pick the top ten shows of the season.
Comme des Garcons Fall/Winter 2019 | Source: Getty Images
By
  • BoF Team

LONDON, United Kingdom — From Marc Jacobs' standout show in New York to Karl Lagerfeld's final show for Chanel at the Grand Palais in Paris, another fashion month has come to a close. Here, BoF's editors pick the top ten shows of the Autumn/Winter 2019 season. Which was your favourite? Let us know in the comments below.

1. Comme des Garçons — designed by Rei Kawakubo, PFW

Comme des Garçons Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Comme des Garçons Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Comme des Garçons Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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Rei Kawakubo drew on a repertoire of the most civilised dress, but mutated her finery with hard industrial elements. The impact of this dystopian couture was stunning: society through a glass darkly.

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2. Prada — designed by Miuccia Prada, MFW

Prada Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Prada Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Prada Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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It might have been one of Miuccia Prada’s most curiously uncompromising collections. She has always twisted tropes to animate her collections, but there’s more urgency now.

3. Loewe — designed by Jonathan Anderson, PFW

Loewe Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Loewe Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Loewe Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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Jonathan Anderson makes oddity effortless. But his maturity as a designer means that the eccentricity is merely one arrow in his quiver of very convincing fashion possibilities.

4. Victoria Beckham — designed by Victoria Beckham, LFW

Victoria Beckham Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Victoria Beckham Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Victoria Beckham Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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Victoria Beckham's collection impressed with its sensual rigour and a razor-like precision that would suit the most exacting – possibly transgressive — demands.

5. Balenciaga — designed by Demna Gvasalia, PFW

Balenciaga Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Balenciaga Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Balenciaga Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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The codes of Cristobal’s legacy give Demna Gvasalia’s Balenciaga its spine because that’s what he feels compelled to mutate for modern times. After last season’s psychedelic tunnel, he wanted the focus to be purely on the clothes.

6. Maison Margiela — designed by John Galliano, PFW

Maison Margiela Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Maison Margiela Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Maison Margiela Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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There was something restrained about this show, all the way to the last look, which felt like John Galliano was holding fire, poised, plotting his next assault on orthodoxy.

7. Marc Jacobs — designed by Marc Jacobs, NYFW

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Marc Jacobs Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Marc Jacobs Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Marc Jacobs Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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Marc Jacobs showed one of his best collections in years, with actual, desirable clothes. Fantastical, but not a fantasy.

8. Chanel — designed by Karl Lagerfeld, PFW

Chanel Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Chanel Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Chanel Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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In his final collection, which made crystal clear that fashion’s empire builder is no more, the late Karl Lagerfeld offered a fresh take on Chanel classics.

9. Rick Owens — designed by Rick Owens, PFW

Rick Owens Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV Rick Owens Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

Rick Owens Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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Rick Owens wanted his collection to be full-on glam: the platform boot, the sharp sci-fi shoulder, the sexual provocation. His clothes are always grand, though it doesn’t explain their animal magic.

10. JW Anderson — designed by Jonathan Anderson, PFW

JW Anderson Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV JW Anderson Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

JW Anderson Autumn/Winter 2019 | Source: INDIGITAL.TV

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Jonathan Anderson is working some fine line between purity and provocation. It's irresistible, even if it demands a lot of its wearer.

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