Robotic Exotic ; Nicolas Ghesquiere's Futuristic Creations for Balenciaga Are Completely out of This World. He Tells Susannah Frankel Why He Loves C-3PO Chic

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'I wanted to express the idea of artificial legs - robot legs," says the Balenciaga designer Nicolas Ghesquiere of his full-metal "leggings", which have proved among the most written- and talked- about pieces of this spring/ summer season.

It's not difficult to see why. Even by designer-fashion standards, these leggings are extreme, which is precisely what might be expected from one of the world's most forward-thinking designers. "We had a lot of documentation on robots from comics, movies, Japanese artists, so everything was mixed," Ghesquiere explains, going on to protest, "They're not so unwearable..." But the distinct feeling is that he is all too aware of the fact …