Under the leadership of creative director Demna, BALENCIAGA has almost no designs that it dares not make. Recently, the brand launched a short skirt that looks like men’s boxer briefs, which has sparked heated discussions on the Internet. Many netizens complained about this “underwear design”, and some said “this is basically a CALVIN KLEIN couture version.”
The reason is that this boxer skirt looks too realistic, and the price is close to half a month’s salary for an average office worker, priced at nearly NT$20,000, which instantly triggered netizens to spread it like crazy and discuss the topic.
This new short skirt from BALENCIAGA, with a mid-waist cut and elastic cotton material, simulates the appearance of boxer shorts that are almost unreal. It not only subverts the established perception of “wearing underwear outside”, but also keeps up with the avant-garde “wearing underwear outside” trend that has emerged in the fashion circle in recent years.
Using creative vision to turn boxer shorts into short skirts, humorously subverting the perception of dressing, and once again highlighting the tension between fashion and street culture that designer Demna has mastered.
Demna has been in charge of BALENCIAGA for ten years, constantly reforming the brand design perspective with innovative thinking and street culture. As he is about to usher in the final high-end show mission, the recently officially released 2026 Spring and Summer series “EXACTITUDES” is the final round of the ready-to-wear series.
The series focuses on the classic silhouettes, cuts, codes, and provocative language he has built over the past decade, all of which are injected into the design context of his farewell work. From blurring gender boundaries, distorting clothing functions, to deconstructing the boundaries between luxury and trends, he redefines fashion as a contemporary cultural vocabulary.
Before the official sale of the final series, the newly launched “smiling and noble” boxer shorts skirt is also one of the best annotations. On the one hand, it is a joke, but on the other hand, it has stolen the limelight in the boutique market.
As the time for his resignation approaches, Demna joins hands with superstar Britney Spears to launch a joint series as the climax of his creation at BALENCIAGA.
Various designs printed with Britney Spears’ classic hollow-out photography works, such as T-shirts, retro and distressed sports caps, and music projects with a playlist of songs personally selected by Britney Spears, all reflect Demna’s expertise in translating celebrity culture, street spirit and symbols to the extreme.
The joint series is not just a cross-border collaboration, but more like a tribute to the millennial generation and popular memory, in line with his long-term exploration of clothing as a cultural symbol.
Demna’s ten years at BALENCIAGA have written many wonderful chapters for the brand. The brand also announced that the ten-year retrospective exhibition “BALENCIAGA BY DEMNA” curated by Demna himself will be launched at the Kering Group’s Paris headquarters from June 27.
The exhibition will fully demonstrate how he closely sewed street wear, subculture attitudes and contemporary art vocabulary into a unique BALENCIAGA decade.
Just like the “sky-high boxer skirt” that has been hotly discussed recently, people are repeatedly reminded: Demna’s designs have never been just clothes, but also questions, and a rebellious experiment against fashion logic.