Cover Schiaparelli’s surrealist designs, like the draped gown of Teyana Taylor at the Golden Globes, blur the line between haute couture and wearable art (Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic/Getty Images)
Schiaparelli’s surrealist designs, like the draped gown of Teyana Taylor at the Golden Globes, blur the line between haute couture and wearable art (Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic/Getty Images)
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From Bella Hadid’s moulded gown to Teyana Taylor’s glittering thong, discover how Schiaparelli is redefining red carpet dressing as wearable sculpture in celebration of its Hong Kong flagship store opening
As Schiaparelli opens its first permanent flagship in Asia at The Landmark in Hong Kong in January 2026, the storied maison is experiencing a renaissance. The house was founded in 1927 by Roman-born aristocrat-turned-designer Elsa Schiaparelli, who revolutionised fashion by treating garments as canvases for fine art. She collaborated with Salvador Dalí on the iconic lobster dress and created the provocative 1938 Skeleton Dress, establishing a legacy of shock and surrealism. Today, under creative director Daniel Roseberry, Maison Schiaparelli’s provocative spirit has been revived for the digital age, transforming red carpets into surrealist galleries and celebrities into walking sculptures.
Schiaparelli’s moulded breastplates, floating straps and architectural silhouettes dominate awards season, proving that fashion’s most daring house understands the currency of the image. These unforgettable celebrity moments demonstrate why the brand isn’t simply creating clothes—it’s crafting museum-quality art you can wear.
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Ariana Grande’s crystal Basque clam gown channels a 1930s lamp
At the 97th Academy Awards, Ariana Grande wore a custom pink bustier gown inspired by an Alberto Giacometti lamp from Schiaparelli’s archives. The dress featured a distinctive Basque clam hip shape and shimmered with over 190,000 crystal sequins and rhinestones, creating a liquid, luminous effect that transformed the pop star into a glowing sculpture.
Bella Hadid’s moulded bodice creates a trompe l’oeil statue
For The Beauty premiere in New York, Hadid wore a bias-cut red silk gown featuring a bodice that used trompe l’oeil techniques to sculpt an idealised anatomy over her own form. This architectural approach turned her body into a living statue, freezing perfection in permanent, sculptural form.
Teyana Taylor’s beribboned thong elevates pop culture to high art
Accepting her Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress, Teyana Taylor delivered the evening’s most subversive moment. Her draped black satin gown appeared conservative from the front, but revealed an exposed bijou thong crafted with silver rhinestones at the back—transforming a once-derided trend into high couture sculpture.
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Kim Kardashian’s anatomical armour explores protection through fashion
At the All’s Fair premiere, Kardashian’s moulded brown bodice resembled a superhero’s musculature or Greek cuirass. This fabric shell worn over soft skin explored fashion’s protective qualities, contrasting vulnerability with invincibility through sculptural construction that turned the body into an architectural statement.
Miley Cyrus’s face bag transforms accessories into characters
At the Something Beautiful with Miley Cyrus premiere, the singer wore a woven organza dress embroidered with crystal water drops and finished with cascading fringes, paired with a matching fringe stole. She carried Schiaparelli’s iconic Face Bag, featuring moulded facial features that transform a functional accessory into an animated character.
Lily Collins’s architectural wings freeze movement in sculptural form
Lily Collins’s white cocktail dress featured rigid, pleated elements resembling wings or bandages wrapping the body. The fabric was treated to hold shapes that looked like carved plaster or folded paper, capturing the ephemeral quality of movement and freezing it into permanent, wearable architecture.
Hailey Bieber’s hourglass gown reveals couture’s internal construction
At the Academy Museum Gala, Hailey Bieber’s brown corset dress exaggerated the female form to almost cartoonish proportions. Contrasting panels acted as frames, deliberately exposing the internal architecture and construction required to achieve such a dramatic silhouette—turning process into aesthetic statement.
Dua Lipa’s gilded siren treats the body as a glittering canvas
During her Radical Optimism tour, Dua Lipa’s gold bodysuit featured intricate mesh and metallic detailing reminiscent of Schiaparelli’s archival Apollo capes. Rather than treating the body as a mannequin for fabric, creative director Daniel Roseberry positioned it as a canvas for precious beads, discs and mirrors, creating a contemporary interpretation of classical gilded sculpture.
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After more than a decade in lifestyle media, Clifford has mastered the art of writing seriously about things that are fun—and writing fun things about people who take themselves very seriously. At Tatler Asia, he helped steer its flagship lists, Tatler’s Most Influential and Asia’s Most Stylish. And today, he leads T-Labs, Tatler Asia’s content innovation hub, where he continues the noble pursuit of lifestyle storytelling, spinning stories on wealth, entertainment, necessary style, Hallyu, Hollywood, beauty and more for audiences across Asia.
