Not just the effect of the heavy velvet curtain backdrop, but there was a dramatic slant to spring 2025, even when the looks were rendered in pastels. Roughly half of them were head-to-toe black (plus slate grey and burgundy) or heavily incorporated it. A perfect recipe for true fashion lovers whose love for the inky hue is a well-known inside joke. But the dark mood was actually part of a collaboration with Canadian photographer Greg Girard whose work has provided a window into how Asias largest cities have transformed – physically and socially – over the last three decades. Girard specialises in almost uncomfortable images (by using harsh street or fluorescent lighting to create an ambient effect) of daily life late at night, from motel lobby’s to back alleys and grocery stores.