Balenciaga’s Summer 22 campaign transforms the themes of its presentation, “Red Carpet,” into virtual reality. Characters holding XX, Triplet, and Hourglass bags walk a computer-rendered red carpet wearing facsimiles of the collection, turning the photocall moment into a streaming game snapshot created with Paris-based artist Claudia Mate.

3D avatars made in the images of models Tommy Blue, Eugenie Bondurant, Marie-Agn s Diene, Abdou Diop, Zinedine El Ouazzani, Gwen Lu, Aki Nummela, Anania Orgeas, Hansi Schmidt, Minttu Vesala, and Inti Wang step and pose, dressed in some of the season’s ready-to-wear, eyewear, jewelry, and footwear offerings.

Claudia Mate’s art practice encompasses a variety of new media formats including video, programming, interactive 3D, game design, VR, and sound. In her work, she often blends modern technology with retro markers, creating a nonideological, infinite aesthetic with endless possibilities.