Alexis Mabille Fall 2026 Couture Collection

Thankfully, the experiment that Alexis Mabille carried out last season—an oxymoron of haute couture via artificial intelligence—was a one-off, and the designer was back today with a fully realized collection. Actually, it even qualified as a double offer, since every creation transformed into a second look.

This wasn’t immediately clear when the models emerged into the basement hall of a church in the sleepy 16th arrondissement, their pacing so sped up that there was barely a moment to register the various volumes, never mind the nuances, of their all-black silhouettes. But then the first model returned along with two assistants wearing black body stockings who removed and reversed her austere chasuble dress—she stood unfazed in lacy lingerie—to reveal a glittering silver draped dress and a whole new attitude, from minimalist to all-out glam.

Would every look change like this? To varying degrees, yes, depending on the complexity of the construction and whether the model could simply unfasten a panel to trigger the transformation, or whether the dressers needed to assist with the shimmying out and the re-entry. The photos here are arranged so that you can see the ‘before’ and ‘after,’ minus the time that elapsed for the switcheroo. With my seat unfortunately placed behind the action, I missed a certain ‘wow’ that others would have seen in this near-seamless transition, yet these dressers were under pressure and they rose to the occasion.

To Mabille’s credit, the gambit was clever and well-executed. You would never guess that the belted black jumpsuit in Look 9 was hiding the ornately embroidered golden layer underneath in look 10; or that the slightly boxy mini dress of Look 11 would release into the long sequined sheath of Look 12. The finale that initially appeared as a pumpkin-shaped black pouf engulfing the model from the waist up opened up to a bridal-like confection of an embroidered bustier that gave way to flounces of white Chantilly lace. “I had this idea to show how we [as designers] can dual in our heads. Every season, we have to make a choice: something pink with ruffles when the drawing was so beautiful in black and white. So I thought, let’s do it altogether with two personalities,” Mabille explained, noting how the “reversibility” added to the challenge. “With an A-shaped dress, when there is also the movement of the ruffles inside, this can be nice and decorative, but it also needs to sustain the volume.”

Several transformed looks were baroque to the extreme; see the sequins, beading, and embroidery of the turquoise coat and corresponding dress, or the extravagant saffron number that took the place of a black A-line gown. Who knows, perhaps Mabille felt that he had to redeem his couturier reputation. The soundtrack—beginning with “You Don’t Know Me,” and closing with Nina Hagen’s cover of “My Way,” plus some Nino Rota for Fellini in-between—spoke volumes.

While this played out like a performance, Mabille was ostensibly proposing a practical solution of two couture looks in one. Imagine starting the evening in the restrained black cape dress only to flip it around to the fuchsia side with its swirling black lace drama. Artist and fashion collector Jordan Roth was there in the audience; as someone who’s mastered the art of the ’fit change, he might very well have been watching with an order in mind.