Jean Paul Gaultier was bonkers. A year in, it’s safe to say that Duran Lantink’s appointment as creative director was the best decision the brand could have made – precisely because it was also the riskiest. Of course, if you look at his spring-summer 2027 collection from a “pragmatic” point of view, it’s very easy to dismiss. But remind yourself that fashion can, after all, be fun – and that for designers like Gaultier, Sonia Rykiel and Franco Moschino, this was practically a mantra – and suddenly what Lantink is doing feels brilliant.

There are no in-your-face references to Jean Paul’s archives. Instead, Lantink seems to have understood a Jean Paul way of thinking – if only Sean McGirr had found a similar pattern at McQueen. There are cheeky nods to Holland, Lantink’s native country, but also to Tyrol and Bavaria: dresses covered in jingling bells, folk-inspired patterns, white milkmaid nightgowns. And then, all of a sudden, seriously mundane clothes for getting your hands dirty, like a parka jacket. After this collection, you just want to book a trip somewhere in the mountains. And never come back.

All collages by Edward Kanarecki.

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