At Isabel Marant’s Spring/Summer 2026 show, the sun was the starting point. “It’s about a girl on a journey, searching for the sun, with a ‘Max Max’ kind of vibe,” newly-minted artistic director Kim Bekker tells me backstage before the show. “All her clothes are bleached by the sun, she’s crafting her own boots, she puts pearls on it, she puts a belt over it.” That girl—a mix of a wandering nomad, a free spirited festival go-er and downtown Parisian It girl—set the tone for a collection that unfolded from a desert day into the night.
This was Bekker’s first official collection as Isabel Marant’s sole creative director, though she has been closely designing alongside Marant herself for years. When I ask her about how she feels about leading the brand solo, she acknowledges that it’s no small task. “It’s about the brand, it’s not about the person designing it,” she says. “It’s a pressure to step into Isabel’s footsteps—she’s an amazing woman, a great talent—and I hope I will honor her.” On a Thursday evening in Paris’ Palais-Royal, she did just that.
The show felt like an escape, quite literally. Our girl has left her buttoned-up life behind and traded her silk dresses for cargo trousers cut loose, weightless jackets with oversized flap pockets, and slouchy totes tucked under arms as if ready to sling across a dusty highway. “It’s daywear with a lot of great details,” Bekker says. “One of the jackets I’m really fond of on Mona [Tougaard] is a utility wear patchwork jacket with different materials, leathers and cottons, paired with a soft silk sweatpant.”
Accessories were not just extras; they were plot points. A new banana bag, Bekker mentioned, made its quiet debut. The detailing was pure Marant: totemic embroideries, bark-etched jewelry, beaded fringe. Jewelry bore bark textures; belts dangled with fringe. Boots—airy, lace-up, heat-hardened—felt almost talismanic, the kind of shoes you wear until the soles give out. “That’s one piece I’m most proud of,” Bekker tells me with a smile.
But this is Isabel Marant, after all, and our desert wanderer doesn’t stay practical for long. Halfway through her trip, she stumbles into what feels like a dust-swept, impromptu rave. Out came the skin: draped dresses twisted into knots to reveal ribcages, crochet crop tops paired with matching minis, asymmetric ruffles that swished and swung with every step. The energy of the show was soundtracked by Little Simz, who Bekker listened to as she designed the collection, along with Tyler the Creator, Doechii, and Nia Smith. “I need to have the rhythm,” she explained. “To be able to dance and feel the clothes, the fabrics, how it moves and flows and sits on the body.”
In the end, the sun-bleached neutrals gave way to bronzes and soft pinks, which in turn deepened into violet, chocolate, and inky black. The final looks debuted: sparkly vests thrown over girlish blouses and midnight silks that practically shimmered under the under the glaring lights of the Palais-Royal. The last few dresses felt like pure Isabel Marant, with a wink of downtown party girl: a sequined tank over silk pants, a floral-trimmed micro-mini, and a black baby-doll dress dripping in dangling sequins—a look I can already picture on many an It girl sipping on a dirty martini at Chez Margaux come spring.
By this point, our girl had abandoned the idea of a destination entirely and surrendered to the revelry of the night. Will she ever arrive where she set out to go? We’ll never know. But as Bekker’s debut proved, isn’t the journey the most fun part anyway ?
