Paris Fashion Week celebrates 50 years since May 1968 protests

This year, three strong messages were conveyed at Paris fashion week: at Dior, Maria Grazia Chiuri once again flaunts her feminist credentials, Marine Serre embraces recycling, while Dawei advocates for courtesy and respect. The Chinese designer chose to self-quarantine, on the remote off chance he’s brought coronavirus back from Beijing.

In this edition of Across Africa we take you to eastern Ethiopia where refugees from kenya's Kakuma camp are finally coming home motivated by recent political and economic reforms. We also head to Angola where the country is tempting more lovers of its romantic Kizomba dance. Finally, we speak to Thebe Magugu, South African designer and 2019 LVMH prize winner as he exhibits for the first time at Paris Fashion week.

The first-ever online Paris fashion week clicks off with the world of runway shows thrown into an existential crisis by the coronavirus. Dior has replaced its usual runway show with a short film by Italian Director Matteo Garrone, showcasing a miniature collection.

In an online message to mark the start of Paris Fashion Week, British supermodel Naomi Campbell ushered in a new age of digital fashion, while also embracing the goals of the Black Lives Matter movement. In these extraordinary times due to Covid-19, runway fashion shows are banned, with designers instead releasing videos on social media to showcase their collections, directed by an array of impressive names. We take a look at how this form of French soft power is moving with the times.

models strutDior showcases its cruise collection on a catwalk at the Piazza del duomo in Lecce, southern Italy, in the first runway show by a major fashion house since coronavirus lockdowns began in Europe.

As the world of fashion mourns the death of Kenzo Takada, Paris once again plays host to real-life fashion shows. Under the leadership of creative director Felipe Oliveira Baptista, Kenzo sounds the alarm over the destruction of global bee populations. At Dior, meanwhile, Maria Grazia Chiuri explores the way clothes are now more in the private sphere than ever before. And Nigerian designer Kenneth Ize uses his catwalk show to send home a defiant message: the celebration of his queer identity.

Covid-19 restrictions mean that Paris Fashion Week is taking place in the digital sphere. In-the-flesh fashion shows, interviews and parties aren't happening – instead, buyers and journalists get to sit back and watch a series of films via social media. So how are these films made? We spent 72 hours with Louis-Gabriel Nouchi, a young Parisian designer whose collection, shown at the Palais de Tokyo, is inspired by Franz Kafka's book "The Trial" and brought to life with the help of choreographer Sohrâb Chitan.

Mirror, mirror on the wall… who's the fairest of them all? Dior’s sumptuous and subversive film for next autumn's ready-to-wear offerings suggests the answer isn't a simple one. With in-person fashion weeks still cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the film was shot inside Versailles's world-famous hall of mirrors. Maria Grazia Chiuri takes us deep into a world of fairy tales with the help of a challenging set from Italian artist Silvia Giambrone, set off by choreography from Sharon Eyal.

Christian Dior's hit exhibition tracing the history of the legendary French fashion house opens in New York this week with an American twist after record-breaking attendances in Paris and London.

Models walk the runway with the Eiffel Tower in the background as Yves Saint Laurent's live show returns to the Paris Fashion Week. The live shows follow similiar returns at London, Milan and New York fashion weeks this year, after much of the designer world moved online last year thanks to Covid.

After 18 months of mostly online shows, Paris Fashion Week is back with models, designers, celebrities and fashionistas flocking to in-person shows. Fashion writer Alice Pfeiffer talks about the post-pandemic era of fashion; the radical change at Dior, one of France's oldest brands; plus her favourite show so far: Charles de Vilmorin's first collection as creative director of Rochas.

This year's ready-to-wear winter collections are all about love and seduction: the delicate balance between what's shown and what isn't. Vaquera has found inspiration in the iconic black latex jumpsuit worn by Maggie Cheung in the 1996 film "Irma Vep" directed by Olivier Assayas. Victor Weinsanto, meanwhile, showcases an extravagant corset-and-cape look for "Emily in Paris" star Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu. Finally, the Love Brings Love exhibition offers a moving homage to late iconic designer Alber Elbaz.