Iris van Herpen becomes a fashion scientist as she wears lightning and plasma in her Fall/Winter haute couture collection

Key takeaways

• Iris van Herpen has unveiled her Fall/Winter 2026/27 haute couture collection, Sonic Starquakes, inspired by astrophysics, sound waves, and cosmic energy.
• The Fractal Universe gown was charged in a particle accelerator, then subjected to high-voltage discharge to create genuine Lichtenberg figures.
• The Helix Nebula gown is the first to incorporate plasma, the fourth state of matter, into haute couture design, allowing the human body to interact with the plasma’s electric field.
• The rest of the collection continues the brand’s exploration of techniques including glassmaking, sound-wave visualization, and glass microspheres, depicting cosmic vibrations and the energy of life.

Known as “fashion’s scientist,” Iris van Herpen once again brings together astrophysics, particle science, and haute craftsmanship in her Fall/Winter 2026/27 couture collection, Sonic Starquakes. More than a presentation of clothing, the show feels like an experiment between art, science, and future technology. Its most astonishing pieces are two looks that almost redefine couture.

• Related reading: The runway’s biggest surprise: Pierpaolo Piccioli’s first Balenciaga couture collection turned the classic Motorcycle Bag into a luxury piece!

Fractal Universe: A couture gown infused with lightning

Images from ig / @irisvanherpen

Several days before the Paris show, the gown was sent into a particle accelerator to be charged, then cryogenically preserved, creating a metastable energy field within the garment that held billions of electrons. Over time, the gown began to naturally release its charge. High-voltage discharges etched branching, tree-like patterns into the transparent material: the Lichtenberg figures of physics. These details were not made by the designer’s hand, but by the lightning itself; every pattern is a trace left by an actual electrical discharge. Iris van Herpen permanently captures a fleeting natural phenomenon within haute couture, making lightning a true co-creator of the piece.

Helix Nebula puts plasma on the body, letting the wearer interact with cosmic energy

Images from ig / @irisvanherpen

The other finale piece, Helix Nebula, once again pushes the boundaries of how we think about fashion materials. For the first time, the brand brings plasma, the primary substance that makes up stars, into haute couture. Unlike solids, liquids, and gases, plasma is the fourth state of matter: It has no fixed shape and is made up of charged particles. The Iris van Herpen team sealed blue plasma inside two hand-blown glass devices, suspended in front of the gown’s bodice like two small floating celestial bodies. Most remarkable is that when the model wears the piece, the body itself becomes part of the plasma’s electric field. Because of the body’s conductive properties, the plasma changes how it flows in response to touch and proximity to the body.

Technology has always been only part of the creative process

Images from ig / @irisvanherpen

Beyond its two most representative pieces, this season’s Sonic Starquakes continues the brand’s deep exploration of technological craftsmanship. Inspired by astrophysics and 19th-century sound-experiment pioneer Margaret Watts Hughes, the collection transforms stellar vibrations, sound-wave frequencies, and human energy into three-dimensional silhouettes. It also uses hand-blown glass, transparent resin, 3D structures, and around 10,000 glass microspheres to create couture gowns that flow like galaxies. For Iris van Herpen, technology has never been the end goal, but a way for people to perceive the forces of nature anew. From lightning and sound waves to plasma, these usually invisible energies become wearable works of art in her hands.

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