Jean Paul Gaultier stuns Paris Couture Week with a collection inspired by 'seductive, decadent dandy' Pete Doherty - and androgynous model Andrej Pejic as star of the show



The 60-year-old designer said he was 'bowled over' by the British musician after meeting him in Cannes

Resulting show was a theatrical, androgynous feast for the eyes

Gaultier sparked controversy with his last show after sending out Amy Winehouse lookalikes soon after her death




Jean Paul Gaultier is no stranger to pushing the boundaries. He sparked controversy with his last couture show after he sent out Amy Winehouse lookalikes in clothing similar to those the late singer used to wear just months after her death.



And with today's show, the French couturier proved that aged 60, he still knows how to push buttons. Gaultier chose as his muse the former drug addicted musician, Pete Doherty.



The fashion designer encountered Doherty during his stint as a Cannes Film Festival jury member this year.



Doherty made his acting debut as a 19th-century figure in a film that was screened at the Riviera event. The movie, 'Confession of a Child of the Century,' bowled Gaultier over. 'I said my god he is so seductive, a decadent dandy,' said the designer backstage. 'And that's my collection.'

So it was that this show, with its unlikely matinee idol as a muse, became a dandyesque tribute to the silver screen.



Androgynous 'femi-man' model Andrej Pejic was the star turn of Jean Paul Gaultier's androgynous couture show this afternoon

The result was a theatrical delight. Androgynous by design and by the virtue of the show's star turn, the so-called 'femi-man' model Andrej Pejic, who strode onto the catwalk wearing a gauzy black top that revealed his chest, it was pure Gaultier.



Nineteenth century top hats accompanied high taffeta collars, deconstructed texture-rich satin crepe waistcoats and a sea of black.



The black was broken up with explosions colour and bright fox fur, which provoked whoops of delight from the crowd.



Gaultier threw in other cinema references for good measure.



'The original idea I thought of doing Fritz Lang's Metropolis,' he said, and indeed, as if straight out of that 1927 science-fiction film, there was a grey metallic looking cape with golden lining. He had clearly done his cinema homework.



The shoulderless jumpsuit which completed the ensemble had the broken sheen of scrubbed metal, like the film's robot Mechanical Maria.



Art deco prints and the odd robotic conical bra only added to the graphic feel.



The piece de resistance came in the form of a science-fiction corset cage, that stood out from the model's body like a mechanised hourglass.



'I'm here because it's lively and provocative,' said movie star Bette Midler from the front row.



And indeed it was.







Theatrical: The opulent fabrics and striking shapes evoked scenes from the silver screen

Flamboyant: Androgynous suits, top hats and metallic tones were a running theme in the collection

Muse: Musician Pete Doherty, who Gaultier encountered when he saw a film he was starring in during Cannes, inspired French designer Jean Paul Gaultier takes a bow at the end of the show



