Pierpaolo Piccioli Shines A Light On Paris Fashion Week

For his second ready-to-wear collection for Balenciaga, Pierpaolo Piccioli shed light on a lot of things — including the fact that he’s got serious range. Not that anyone doubted it, but even the VIP guests who sat front row at the show, which was staged in a dark room on the Champs Elysees, were in wide variety. From film stars Winona Ryder and Harris Dickinson (the brand’s latest ambassadors) to Elizabeth Debicki and Naomi Watts (who attended with her model daughter Kai Schrieber) to the hottest talent on television including Hudson Williams of Heated Rivalry fame, Rachel Sennot, Josh Hutcherson, and Euphoria’s Anna Van Patten, Chloe Cherry, and Priscilla Delgado, Piccioli certainly has support in all the right places.

Whether or not it was Piccioli himself or the show’s set, a collaboration with Euphoria director Sam Levinson, that drew the A-list crowd, they were served up a feast of a collection that was more than worth their while. The first nine looks were done in black leather and wool, for the most part similar in vibe to the Italian designer’s celebrated debut last September, which proved to be a sophisticated shift away from the streetwear and athleisure that dominated the house under Piccioli’s predecessor Demna Gvaslia. This season though, Piccioli threw the Demna Balenciaga stan a bone or two, with a graphic hoodie styled with leather opera gloves and studded brogues, perhaps a nod to his roots at Valentino. Also sprinkled in were a few pairs of chunky statement sneakers, crystallized futuristic sunglasses, and the beloved Rodeo and City Bags, the latter of which was decorated with luminous colored shadows and dubbed the Midnight City.

Throughout the show, there was a spotlight on outerwear in a handful of silhouettes and materials, including a leather and shearling bomber jacket, a hot pink cocoon coat, a cropped army green parka, and an ombre fur. The parka and fur were paired with perfectly tailored, high-waisted jeans, and two new handbag styles. While those looks could be considered daywear, Piccioli also delivered in the eveningwear category, with gowns that are likely to be snatched up by celebrity stylists ahead of the Oscars and its corresponding after parties next week. Case in point: a burgundy velvet, draped midi dress with a sexy side cut-out, an emerald green sparkly mini, and the finale numbers that glistened under the lights like “clair obscur,” the High Renaissance artistic technique cited as inspiration in the the brand’s show notes.

No matter the time of day or the occasion, Piccioli clearly set out to show the wide range of individuals who love bearing the Balenciaga name that he sees them. “I am deeply interested in people, in the narratives they carry, in the complex intertwining paths that shape their lives. In their stories,” Piccoli stated in a post-runway press release. “This has always informed and shaped my work, my creative approach. I am drawn to fragility and imperfection, because that is where I recognize authenticity and beauty of life.”

Ahead, see the highlights from the Fall/Winter 2026 collection below.