Longtime Kenzo designers stage final show in Paris

It was quite literally the final curtain for Kenzo's Carol Lim and Humberto Leon at Paris Fashion Week on Sunday, after the duo's eight successful years at the creative helm of the house came to a close.

With a 100-meter (110-yard) curtain on set, a surprise performance by singer Solange and thousands of guests in attendance, the duo's departure was a farewell to remember.

Here are some highlights from the final day of spring-summer 2020 men's and co-ed collections from the Kenzo show and others by Lanvin and Paul Smith.

Designer Kenzo Takada, left, accepts applause as he walks with singer Solange Knowles after the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A MONUMENTAL KENZO SHOW

For their final show, Leon and Lim went back to the homeland of house founder Kenzo Takada: Japan and its legendary seas.

More specifically, they paid homage to the Ama, a dying community of aging Japanese females who free dive into their late 70s.

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

"For over 2000 years (they) have dived to the ocean floor to forage for seafood such as shrimp, urchins or even pearls... They have become known as the last mermaids," Leon said.

An accessorized neoprene suit began the show, heralding the aquatic-theme with ankle bracelets in pearly coral clusters.

Men's bags were fashioned in wide netting.

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A loose-fitting blue suit had a wrinkled look and white markings that suggested it had been dried on the sand and bleached in the sun. It was a beautiful piece.

In the co-ed show, the female models sported floor-length hairpieces while wearing anything from swimsuit hybrids and Japanese Okobo sandals in sea-lily print, to a silver dress that had segmented pieces around the bust to resemble shells.

Typical of Leon and Lim, the mermaid look was capped contradictorily by blue jeans and sneakers.

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Still, it felt as if many of the exhaustive 74 designs had been seen before.

KENZO DESIGNERS' FINAL CURTAIN

A large seascape-covered curtain served as a powerful element in the show.

The monumental installation by photographer Yamazaki Hiroshi charted the sun's course over the ocean using a long exposure lens.

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

The visual metaphor for the passing of time had guests spellbound and called attention to the end of an era for the duo of American designers who've made a deep mark on the Paris fashion industry.

Loud bass music reverberated around the warehouse venue before the curtain was sucked up into the roof in a split second, as if by magic. The audience gasped.

The surreal air defined the entire presentation, as dancers moved by bending forward and back on Japanese "geta" clogs.

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Solange, wearing alien-like beaded jewelry, appeared out of the darkness while conducting a brass band. She then sang "a capella" on the catwalk to raucous whoops.

LANVIN IS NAUTICAL BUT NICE

Inside a lofty indoor swimming pool, Bruno Sialelli unveiled his highly-anticipated sophomore collection for Lanvin.

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Given that the former Loewe staffer is the storied house's fourth designer in four years, there are lots of hopes pinned on him to rescue the world's oldest continually running couture maison from the creative wilderness.

Channeling styles that might be described as "sailor punk," Sialelli did just that — rising to the challenge with a show that overflowed with clever ideas.

Rich color — which seems to be Sialelli's touchstone thus far — was used with panache in a carefully stage-managed set that featured men's and women's designs. The pale blue swimming pool doors and multicolor wall mosaics were visible in the background.

Singer Solange Knowles wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A saffron hoodie accompanied a pair of baggy indigo waterproof pants. A duffel coat was fashioned in Air Force blue. And a white sailor's collar looked like a large, almost diagonal lapel in the Asian style.

Elsewhere, the collection was just plain fun, with a boat print on what resembled a silvery loose pajama.

PAUL SMITH'S SHOULDERS

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

The ultra-wide shoulders that defined London in the late 1970s were the focus of British fashion icon Paul Smith, who used the exaggerated style in a pared-down collection.

High, retro-looking buttons on a suit jacket also stood out, as did oversized pockets that looked like a separate layer of clothing.

Smith is a master colorist.

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

For spring, women's shades included maize, pastel gray, dandelion and baby pink. The men fared just as well in vivid auburn, sage and blood red.

An ochre coat with crimson lining had perhaps the most sumptuous color combination seen this season.

Thomas Adamson can be followed at Twitter.com/ThomasAdamson_K

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Models wear creations for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Designer Bruno Sialelli accepts applause at the end of the Lanvin mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Models wear creations for the Kenzo mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Models wear creations for the Lanvin mens Spring-Summer 2020 fashion collection presented in Paris, Sunday, June 23 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk expressed satisfaction on Monday after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor.

Candidates from his pro-European Union centrist Civic Coalition, or running with the party's backing, won in a series of cities in the second round of local elections held on Sunday, among them Krakow, Poznan, Wroclaw and Rzeszow.

“It is very difficult to clearly say who won and who lost,” Tusk said Monday. “But if we compare these results, especially in the most attractive places, on these attractive battlefields ... then I actually have reasons for satisfaction.”

“Law and Justice has simply disappeared in many places,” Tusk added at a news conference, referring to the main opposition party.

The results put Civic Coalition in a favorable position as the country looks next to elections to the European Parliament on June 9.

Mayors were chosen in a total of 748 cities and towns where no single candidate won at least 50% of the vote during the first round on April 7.

Candidates for Tusk’s party also recaptured cities where they had not held power for many years, including Zielona Gora, Legnica and Torun.

The local and regional elections were viewed as a test for Tusk's pro-European Union government four months after it took power at the national level. Sunday's second round strengthened the Tusk government's leverage in the cities, which should facilitate cooperation on development projects and allotment of EU funds.

Tusk's allies also won in some places in the first round two weeks ago, including in Warsaw, where incumbent Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski was an easy victor.

In the first round, the right-wing Law and Justice, prevailed on the level of regional assemblies in the country's 16 provinces, where it took 34.3% of the votes, while Tusk's Civic Coalition got 30.6%. Law and Justice governed on the national level from 2015-23.

Tusk’s socially liberal Civic Coalition traditionally has strong support in cities, while Law and Justice has a more solid base in conservative rural areas, particularly in eastern Poland.

Civic Coalition is the largest group in a three-party coalition that governs the EU nation of 38 million people. The coalition is pro-European Union but otherwise spans a wide ideological spectrum with left-wing politicians in the Left party as well as conservatives in the Third Way.

Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

Campaign posters promote candidates as Poles vote in local and regional elections in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

FILE - Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk reacts during his and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meeting with students in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Jan. 22, 2024. Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk is celebrating a victory on Monday April 22, 2024 after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)

FILE - Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk listens to the media in Berlin, Germany, Friday, March 15, 2024. Tusk is celebrating a victory on Monday April 22, 2024 after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)