Autumn is in the air, no? The days of full moon. Leaves are gradually becoming yellow. Watching Nouvelle Vague films in the evenings. Forgetting about shorts and t-shirts. This Lemaire autumn-winter 2018 coat and layered shirting make me drool.
Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Who to watch in the upcoming fashion month? I’ve decided to select the six designers that you’ve got to keep on your radar for spring-summer 2019. So, while we’re all waiting for September (and it’s lovely breeze), take a look at the names that will be everywhere in just a couple of weeks!
Richard Quinn
His autumn-winter 2018 show in London was attended by the Queen, while the statement floral prints and exaggerated, lady-like volumes are the season’s absolute best-sellers. Those scarf maxi-dresses and puffas are the new classics. Yes, they are! Richard’s show in September is highly anticipated, just as the major debuts at the historical maisons (which I’m quite sceptic about…). Can’t wait to see which direction the designer takes this time. One thing’s quite sure – Quinn’s love for prints, which he produces himself at his studio, isn’t a one-time phenomenon.
Pyer Moss
Kerby Jean Raymond makes activism a crucial component of his brand, Pyer Moss, being vocal about current problems that America faces today – from the current president to widespread social injustice. In his autumn-winter 2018 collection, the designer took black cowboys of the 19th century, including one of the first rodeo stars of the era, Bill Pickett, as inspiration. Moreover, that was the first season where Kerby sent out a line-up of womenswear, which consisted of streetwear sensibility, enormous knitwear and Wild West shirts. AND, that yellow Goddess dress as well. So good. But what else makes Pyer Moss a label to observe is the cultural diversity it embraces, not just in terms of model casting. Others are more than welcome to follow that path.
Matthew Adams Dolan
Dolan’s denim jackets and signature shirt-dresses with exaggerated cuffs are perceived as the new ‘basics’. Why? Noting their couture-level tailoring, Matthew’s fashion is realistic and wearable, but far, far from trivial. It’s not about few good styling tricks or a thoroughly contrived Instagram ‘image’ that fuels the label. Dolan let’s the clothes do the talking for themselves, which is especially rare in the industry. The talented, young designer as well revises American fashion, creating the ultimate classics of 2018 (and for years ahead). SZA and Rihanna approve, just as the fact that Matthew became one of the finalists of this year’s LVMH prize. You better watch that spot.
Molly Goddard
While looking at Molly Goddard’s last collection, I was just impressed with the way this young designer does everything so effortlessly, with so much joy. During the autumn-winter 2018 show, models stopped for a bottle of wine or a chat, in the middle of the kitchen-themed venue. Few seasons ago, Molly stormed the London fashion week with her over-sized tulle dresses and a cool, ‘what a girl likes’ mood. Now, the designer moves towards new territories of 90s crop-tops and gingham, so that she doesn’t feel trapped by her already beloved signature.
Marine Serre
Manic Soul Machine is how the designer intriguingly titled her first runway collection – a cross-cultural, cross-everything dialogue. While demanding fashion seems to be a deficit today, Serre wants you to reflect on everything, from politics and spirituality to sex and society. Her distinct crescent moon print appeared on nearly everything (athletic bodysuits, shoes, headbands), but the designer’s ‘Futurewear’ as well involved plastic raincoats and motocross jackets. There’s something elusive about Marine Serre’s fashion – it’s hard to explain in one word. It’s ‘love’, ’emotions’, ‘future’, ‘intelligence’ – words that rarely can be used to describe clothes. However, they fit Marine’s work perfectly. Can’t wait to see what’s coming from this designer, really. Paris fashion week, prepare yourself!
Magda Butrym
Although this Polish designer releases her look-books near the time the clothes hit the stores, I still consider her to be one of the names to watch for spring-summer 2019. Butrym’s autumn collection is largely inspired by the Wild West style and country music, but nothing’s too literal in here. The floral mini-dresses with over-sized shoulders and feather stoles are just a slight node to Dolly Parton’s over-the-top style. Rather think of a prairie girl hitting Paris (but this Paris, not the one in Texas). Other than that, we’ve got red velvet, meticulously embellished coats and gorgeous boots with attachable brooches (!). Hot.
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That’s my list. And how about you? Have you got a name (or two) that you’re very keen to follow this season?
All collages by Edward Kanarecki.
She’s a party girl – that’s quite clear once you look at Anthony Vaccarello‘s pre-fall 2018 look-book for Saint Laurent, and the attitude of the woman he envisions. That transitional wardrobe is meant to be classically YSL, but suited for contemporary times. We’ve got bohemian blouses, velvet Le Smoking blazers, leopard spots all over platform boots, studded leather miniskirts, gold lamé minidress – the list goes on. With the ‘Mick Jagger in Morocco’ look, wearing non-chalantly tied shawls and embroidered vests, Mica Arganaraz and Jamie Bochert are like a match-made-in-heaven for this look-book.
Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
“With ready-to-wear, your vision of beauty relates to the times you are living in,” Pierpaolo Piccioli stated after his brilliant, magnificent and remarkable haute couture collection for Valentino. Then, he concluded that “couture involves a deeper and more intimate perspective, to go further into your own vision of beauty.”
‘Beauty’ was definitely the keyword behind that line-up of gorgeousness – by that I mean everything, from Guido Palau’s major hair to the closing orange gown worn by Adut Akech (yes, it’s the same piece Beyoncé snatched to one of her On The Run II concerts, week later after the show took place. That’s quick). No wonder why Valentino Garavani, the man of the brand, was so moved and all in tears by the end of the show. Piccioli pulled of the opulent Italian style in a masterful way, like the founder of the maison did back in the past. Floor-sweeping kimono coats; over-sized shirts with equally XXL collars; skirts and jackets covered in bejewelled prints referring to Greek mythology; ruffled coats in signature Valentino red. The list seems to be endless, just like the number of pink feathers used for that ecstatically fantastic dress Kaia Gerber walked the runway in. But Pierpaolo is known for injecting contemporary elements of the wardrobe to the most exquisite collections of his. Some of the dresses were in fact cut like a t-shirt, while sheer silk blouses with embroideries looked unexpectedly casual with Bermuda shorts. Modernity also came to this collection through colours the designer chose. Of course there were all the rich emeralds and fuchsias. But the dirty shade of pastel pink, softness of pistachio and the depth of burgundy rescued the collection from visually being too over-the-top. The collection, the way it is, somewhere between the old glamour and present sense of style, is perfect.
With John Galliano’s Maison Margiela, I think the verdict is quite clear – we’ve got the ultimate winners of this season’s couture. Now, let me die knowing that I won’t put my hands on all that radzimir and taffeta…
Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Collections like this make you believe in fashion again. Maison Margiela‘s Artisanal line (read: haute couture) became an outlet for John Galliano‘s wildest ideas, which seems to let him explore his most dynamic ideas with the unlimited freedom. But when you listen to John speaking about the collection, you suddenly understand it’s not just a mega-artist’s next epic fantasy. There’s a seed of reality in those multi-layered garments packed with utilitarian textiles, protective pillow-y elements and extreme colours. “We’re all nomads today. . . we do move in tribes.” That nomadic glamour, the term he coined after the show, refers to the contemporary state of things. On the daily basis, we absorb so much information through different, constantly booming media. At the end of the day, we want comfort – but is it even possible in today’s world? Rather, we need shelter or an armour – which can be constructed from tulle, felt wool or some spong-y material, just as Galliano predicts. Even though we already exist in the hi-tech world, the vision of iPhones and iPads sticking out of our bodies like some kind of exoskeleton feels rather dystopian on the other note. But then, if the future will bring the humanity to “neo-digital natives”, as the designer says, then at least our wardrobes won’t disappoint with boldness.
Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
