June 27, 2026
Luxury group LVMH said no water was wasted in the giant artificial waterfall built by its flagship Louis Vuitton brand to open Paris Fashion Week on Tuesday, as the French capital sweltered through a record-breaking heatwave that has made water use a sensitive issue.
The eight-metre-high wave — set against a sand-covered runway — formed the backdrop to singer-songwriter Pharrell Williams' 2027 spring-summer show. The structure was installed outside the Cité Universitaire, a sprawling 20th-century residential complex in southern Paris that houses 12,000 students a year, according to its website.
With temperatures climbing above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) across much of France, images of the installation quickly drew scrutiny from residents and local politicians, rekindling debate over how fashion brands use the city and its landmarks for commercial purposes.
"The water used to create the wave comes entirely from Paris' water supply, which was pumped to the site and then entirely redirected back into Paris' sewer system via a closed-loop system," a LVMH spokesperson told Reuters.
