Just before the start of Jean Paul Gaultier's swan song at Hermès, the curtains of the Halle Freyssinet were pulled back to reveal a paddock where eight gleaming stallions were trotting and sidestepping underneath a ceiling of crystal chandeliers. It was a perfectly pitched backdrop to a collection that was as effortlessly elegant as it was true to the haute and horsey legacy of the French brand. The models wore increasingly sophisticated variations on riding outfits, including skin-tight riding pants, billowing silk shirts and belted jackets in leather or silk chiffon. The pants were tucked in to either flat or high-heeled riding boots – an Hermès staple – when not paired with open toed booties. Each look, including long jersey dresses with chiffon capes, was rendered in a muted earth tone and was the essence of pared-down sophistication. Riding crops and flat Spanish matador hats, meanwhile, gave the collection a subtle frisson of sex.