When Isabelle Huppert’s stylist tells you it’s going to be a “big one,” you know you better buckle in and get the popcorn ready. When Venice Film Festival is involved, second helpings are required. This is, after all, the 71-year-old Parisienne, who basically birthed French insouciance and is now too cool to meet the gaze of the paparazzi, so wears flash-shielding Balenciaga sunglasses instead. “It says, ‘I’m here, but like whatever,’” says her longtime dresser, Jonathan Huguet, of her “twisted” premiere looks that define nonchalance.
“What we had in mind for the opening night of Venice was something bold, but with all the classicism of Italy,” shares Huguet, who found his answer in Demna’s first Balenciaga haute couture collection: an opera coat dress that, for him, conjured up the image of ’50s divas frequenting the theatre. Realized in a vivid “Italian-pope red,” and accompanied by white elbow-length gloves and Cartier jewelry, there was no doubt this was a look befitting the head juror of the 2024 festival. Beetlejuice, who? Huppert’s red-carpet peers didn’t stand a chance.
But if you think the I Heart Huckabees star’s stately yet sexy look is curated to within an inch of its life, think again. “We like that last-minute thing,” asserts Huguet, while describing every other Hollywood stylist’s nightmare. “It’s exciting – that feeling of not being too put-together.” Prior to the premiere, the pair was still playing around with stacking earrings (not always signed off when a major jewellery sponsor is involved), quite simply because Isabelle can pull anything off. “She always wears the clothes – not the other way round,” asserts Huguet. “She knows the character she is playing.”
Of course Huppert has being acting as the Balenciaga muse for some time. “The Venice look focuses on the legacy of Balenciaga and the legacy of Isabelle,” smiles Jonathan of his dream client. “We always find a way to pay homage to two icons, but then we go further to create something cool and chill.” Their secret? (Apart from looking like Huppert.) Good energy. “When we have something to go to, we’re like, ‘Let’s have fun!’” Venice welcomed Huppert’s off-kilter brand of timeless cool with open arms.
