Hussein Chalayan Spring/Summer 2007 'One Hundred and Eleven': Dresses That Transform Through Time
Hussein Chalayan’s Spring/Summer 2007 collection One Hundred and Eleven staged an extraordinary meeting of fashion history, engineering and performance. Shown in Paris in October 2006, its title marked the anniversary of patron Swarovski, whose collaboration helped realise garments that physically changed shape while being worn.
The Collection
At the centre were mechanically transforming dresses that travelled between different historical silhouettes. A tightly constructed Victorian form could shift, without the model stepping away, into a look invoking the 1920s. Other transformations connected the hourglass shape of Christian Dior’s New Look with the metallic visual language associated with Paco Rabanne. The moving structures were not simple tricks: they condensed decades of changing fashion ideals into a single, visible gesture.
The Runway and Its Setting
The models paused as the garments reconfigured, making the runway itself a demonstration of hidden mechanics. In one of the most famous sequences a dress gradually withdrew, revealing how completely design, machinery and choreography could be integrated. The exact operation of each piece was part of the creative concept rather than an invisible backstage service.
Historical Importance
One Hundred and Eleven remains a landmark because it treated technology as a tool for narrating time. The show anticipated later conversations about responsive clothing and wearable design, but it remains distinctive for keeping fashion history, human movement and the emotional force of surprise at its centre.
Museums and Archival References
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Archive Runway Film
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Runway photography: Marcio Madeira, via Vogue Runway. Hussein Chalayan Spring/Summer 2007 ready-to-wear.
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