Mugler Spring 2027: The Birds and the Bees

by · WWD
Mugler Spring 2027 Ready-to-Wear Collection at Paris Fashion WeekDominique Maitre/WWD

This season’s Mugler show was all about the birds and the bees.

Miguel Castro Freitas posted a trailer on Instagram that featured mating snails (try Googling “snail sex” — it’s actually fascinating) spliced with footage of two people exchanging saliva.

It must be something in the air. From the couples making out at the Diesel show to the heavy breathing soundtrack at Tom Ford, designers are in the mood for, erm, love.

The third installment of a trilogy, his “Naturalia X” collection delved into the flora and fauna inspirations present in the work of founder Manfred Thierry Mugler, who was a master at channeling savage beauty.

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Designs like a feather tunic resembling a butterfly wing, croc-embossed leather pants and a spider web dress all referenced Mugler’s seminal spring 1997 haute couture collection “Les Insectes.”

“It’s looking into the feral aspect of nature versus the ethereal aspect of nature — the fragility versus the danger,” Freitas said backstage.

Since joining the house last year the designer has steadily shaped a vision for Mugler rooted in hard-edged glamour. There was a futuristic sheen to his sculptural tailoring in gleaming Mikado silk, offset by the earthiness of faux fur pants and a snakeskin hourglass dress with cheeky bum cleavage.

Freitas enlisted a team of specialists to work on couture-grade pieces including a shaggy hair tunic with a flame-colored motif, sweeping latex fringe evening gowns and molded leather dresses that sprouted strange flowers.

Models walked through an immersive video installation by artist Casper Sejersen with an ear-splitting soundtrack by Teho Teardo. It featured a track by Björk, who wore a custom look from the collection for a DJ performance in Poland on the same day as the runway show.

Adding to the unsettling ambience, front row guests included performance artist Alexis Stone in full prosthetic makeup, disguised as Manfred himself. He was seated next to the late designer’s husband Krzysztof Leon Dziemaszkiewicz.

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“It’s quite surreal,” Freitas conceded. “We approached his husband to get his blessing. It was very important to know that he would be comfortable with seeing the image of the man that he shared his life with, sharing the same venue, and he was very entertained with the idea. He said that Manfred would have loved that.”

Online reaction to the stunt was mixed, casting a shadow over a collection that could easily stand on its own merits.