Animal Magnetism from Jean Paul Gaultier

PARIS, February 28, 2006 - Jean Paul Gaultier's show could easily be remembered for the animal accessories - an owl fluttering on its mistress's bejeweled glove, a shy greyhound shrinking from the glare of photographers flash, a fluffy feline nestling in a model's arms and even a reticent Afghan hound replete with dread locks. But the real story of Tuesday's presentation was the thread of eroticism that fluttered through the collection like the sheer curtains suspended above the catwalk.

Playing again on the theme of his new unisex cologne, Gaultier sent out both male and female models and you didn't have to look very hard to see the enticements: the curve of a hemline gracefully draping the legs, the shiny leather of a crocodile corset peeking from beneath a knit top or the shimmer of an evening gown wrapped in a veil of dewy tulle. Then there was a skirt dripping in jet beads, or the curl of transparent chiffon falling ever so seductively over an emerald-green velvet skirt like discarded hosiery. And things were heated on the men's side too - one male model was poured into a pair of charcoal-gray tights, and another sported a fox pelt over his shoulder. The resulting magnetism almost leapt out of the cologne bottles and onto stage. Jean Paul Gaultier is a master at using clothing to portray an erotic life outside them.

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