J ust as the Resort collections wind down, the 2015 Fall Winter Couture shows arrive to refresh us with the possibility of glimmers of unbridled inspiration that unlimited budgets can provide. Sometimes, as this blog has before has shown, the inspiration can come from the top down and sometimes from the people and the streets as it nudges us forward. The tug of inspiration, like the tides, is continuously oscillating as it pushes us towards evolution of our current period costume.

Austerity has, of course, had an effect on the creative process in that practicalities cannot be ignored. Our wardrobe must meet the essential criteria of being utilized in real life, where dollar/wear matters for the bulk of the public. For the world of couture, while moments exist to indulge in fantasy in special occasions, the customer is more interactive with the world and, as such, the clothes are more in harmony with a market that has provided the democratic range  accessibility that has edged into the necessity and relevance of couture.

That being said, it will always have its place, and as  it dresses those in positions of influence, it has a role in the larger evolution of fashion. While the next article will touch on anticipated technical feats sure to mark the piece of our 21st century identity puzzle, this one will remind of fashion's role as a barometer of awareness.

The world is transfixed on the Greek bailout crisis and it's potential global impact. The ramifications are numerous and grave at its worst-case impact. And, of course, fashion has found inspiration even amongst the direst of circumstances. House labels such as Alberta Ferretti Limited Edition,  Bouchra Jarrar, Giambattista Valli, Schiaparelli and Valentino all featured various goddess gowns fit for a Greek tragedy in luxurious splendor.

In prior generations, such inspiration would be seen as poorly timed. In our more candid times where our entertainment better informs our public than traditional outlets that have abandoned the objectivity in favor of sensationalism, we embrace the realities and find a place for it in our culture in an almost kitch-like appreciation of what we cannot turn away from. There is no glamour in misfortune, but the celebration of the beauty that the subject of turmoil holds touches our romantically nostalgic ruminations. That is, it might be our way of reaching for silver linings while we await with trepidation history to unfold. And of all places, the class act in this Theban showdown is dressed by the leaders of artisanal hands of the world's finest, hoping to make dreams out of what we hope are unmanifested nightmares.