Wild Things. Andreas Kronthaler Vivienne Westwood AW24

March 4, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

Wild things were going on at the Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood runway this season. The autumn-winter 2024 show’s bizarrely eclectic adventures in time travel unfolded around some highly entertaining performance art by Sons of Sissy, a trio of dancers and musicians who blended pagan ritual with high camp and impressions of birdsong and weather events – the bum drumming was a particular highlight. With Sam Smith, Lila Moss and Amelia Hamlin on the catwalk, Andreas Kronthaler presented a collection that was inspired by a Giovanni Battista Moroni exhibition in Milan, and also by protective sportswear (jockstraps were seen all over the line-up). Signature corseted gowns with exaggerated frills and ruffles were juxtaposed with super revealing menswear and jersey materials. Grotesque can be fun and intriguing, but sometimes it might get out of hands.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Need For (Self)Reflection. Alexander McQueen AW24

March 4, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

Séan McGirr‘s debut collection for Alexander McQueen was the most anticipated moment of the season. Maybe that too emotional anticipation has caused all that unnecessary critic-turned-into-hate that has spilled all over the internet? Yes, McGirr’s first collection for the brand leaves you with a confused impression: who is this new McQueen for? What’s the sense of the brand without even one person in it that was actually close to Lee (Sarah Burton filled these shoes, sometimes too monotonously, but at least coherently)? Should Alexander’s work be that literally referenced? Still, please give that young designer, who started his job in December (not even three months ago…), a moment for (self)reflection. Some of his ideas, like making the brand more “assertive and hedonistic”, sound somewhat promising. But to make any sense that appointment, I think McGirr should try looking for the hungrier, grittier, darker and naughtier in himself, and not just revisiting and remixing Lee’s archives.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Misplaced Classics. Carven AW24

March 4, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

Louise Trotter‘s sophomore collection for Carven signals that Paris has a new go-to brand for unconstrained elegance. “I have continued to develop the wardrobe archetypes, the everyday made precious, brought to life in unexpected context, fabrication and proportion. The allure of being dressed up and yet in stages of undress; a space where there is no separation between daywear and evening and where typical daywear silhouettes and fabrics morph into atypical occasion or evening wear. Misplaced classics infused with the comfort and ease of sportswear,” the designer summed up. From the restrained and tonal palette to the masculine-feminine permutations of fabric and shape, there’s a lot to covet. Interestingly, Trotter acknowledged the brand’s history. Madame Carven’s legacy was alive in the column and hourglass silhouettes. And all that stunningly styled by Suzanne Koller. More and more industry insiders are lured by the new charm of Carven, so I expect it to be firing up any second.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Nothing Is What It Seems. Loewe AW24

March 3, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

This was a Loewe by Jonathan Anderson collection that can be comprehended as a line-up of utterly beautiful, artisanally made clothes, but also in terms of something much more conceptual. The framework of this show – set in a private exhibition of small landscape and domestic scenes by the late American painter Albert York – is the context for the designer’s quite off-kilter reflection on the meaning of luxury; specifically a zooming in on the interior landscapes and extremely decorative antique objects collected by wealthy Americans. “I started exploring this idea of provenance and why we buy things and why things come to have meaning,” he said. “The idea of an outsider looking into a world that we don’t experience.” Naturally, Anderson’s intertextual mind was shooting off, looking at the insanely ornate collectibles – elaborate china, tapestry embroideries of pets, Chippendale furniture – that women interior designers “specifically of the 1920s” placed for their clients in their Upper East Side apartments. And there we have the provenance behind the Loewe prints of chintzy fabric and wallpaper flowers, the painted radishes, buttercups, and foliage of English early-18th-century Chelsea porcelain. A silvered collar on a gray cashmere overcoat, masquerading as look-alike fur, turned out to be carved wood. Trompe l’oeil “caviar”-beaded embroidery smothered everything from tracksuits to curtain-fabric balloon trousers. One of the show-stopper bags was a fully detailed bunch of antique Chelsea porcelain asparagus. A replica of a replica from nature, served up once more as the ultimate luxury fashion object for the 21st-century collector.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Prêt-À-Porter. Schiaparelli AW24

March 3, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

Daniel Roseberry‘s Schiaparelli ready-to-wear used to read as an offshoot of the haute couture line. But the autumn-winter 2024 collection offered a new mindset. Cleaned from bold surreal ornaments, eye motifs or in-your-face Elsa Schiaparelli references, Roseberry offered his perspective on daily chic. There was strong tailoring with beautiful silhouettes and ties made to look like plaited hair, corsets worn over vest tops and outerwear with spectacular, hand-made buttons. “So what is Schiap ready-to-wear? It’s a wardrobe full of blazer variations, crisp slacks and separates, and dramatic evening wear – with both our founder’s beloved iconographies (the anatomy, the measuring tape, the keyhole) and my beloved Americanisms (fringe, buckles, and denim) making starring appearances and cameos throughout,” the designer summed up. While the collection seemed to lack direction, and in some moments reminded bits of Demna’s Balenciaga, Kim Jones’ Fendi and Pieter Mulier’s Alaïa, it was certainly refreshing to see more lightness at this detail-heavy brand.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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