Men’s – Motopapi. Courrèges SS23

August 10, 2022 | Design & Culture by Ed

The energy of the concise, item-driven modernity Nicolas di Felice brings to Courrèges is all over the spring-summer 2023 collection. “You know, back in the day, Andre [Courrèges] was speaking to the young generation. I knew from my first week that it was part of the house,” said Di Felice. “So I really want young people to be able to afford the clothes; to make it, let’s say, more accessible.” He grabbed a vintage zip-up scuba-fabric jacket which Courrèges had designed for men in the 1970s as an introduction to how he got started. “I found this in the archive, and thought, ‘This shape is amazing,’ but there’s no point in doing it again. So I wanted to mix this silhouette with a biker vibe, because I had a motorbike when I was young. I thought about how it feels to drive to the beach, or to a festival in the summer, or something,” he laughed. “I’ve been at the house for two years now, so I feel more comfortable to explore a bit more of who I am.” One thing about Di Felice is his knack for filtering lived experience into his minimal-seductive design. His collection captures all the features of young masculine body-con display that’s taken off this summer: tight-to-the torso leather jackets, twisted, cutaway T-shirts, slick moto pants in the house’s heritage-look black vinyl, gabardine polyester trousers and denims with a hint of bootcut flare. It’s his addition of the faux leather bondage straps across the front of jackets that adds a clever utilitarian twist. He demonstrated: “So what you can do is take off your jacket or poncho and hang them off your shoulder by the strap, like this. It came to me simply when I was one more time in a party, and it’s hot and there are not enough cloakrooms. I was like, ‘OK, um, so when I go in on Monday – I’m going do that in the collection!’” The lookbook shows the device in action – clothes gradually becoming cool-looking drapes toted from shoulders, until the last guy ends up naked, carrying all of his clothes. “Like he’s just come out of the water on the beach,” Di Felice grinned.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram!

Je Ne Sais Quoi. Officine Générale SS23

August 7, 2022 | Design & Culture by Ed

In the courtyard of Hotel de Soubise, Officine Générale‘s spring-summer 2023 looks came out languidly, arranged in color stories that shifted slowly across the cobbles in the waning evening sunshine. This was the brand’s 10th anniversary show, and yet so many people discover it just now. It was also one of those shows where you end up playing fantasy personal shopping, because this was less an impactful fashion pop song than carefully conducted piece of apparel mood music. After this gentle show had come to its end, founder Pierre Mahéo emerged to deserved applause. Backstage, the designer pointed out that around 80% of sales are currently outside France, and was refreshingly pragmatic about the formula he’s found. He said: “I think there is an evolution in what we show today in terms of styling, and in terms of putting things together, but the base is the fit, the cut, and the fabrics… The formula is being fair by offering good material at a very decent price, manufactured in Portugal and Italy.” You can’t argue with that. Pretty much, this collection is perfect. Just take a look at all these great cotton knits, chino pants, effortless tailoring, quilted marine jackets and timeless trench coats.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.

Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram!

Mix-And-Match Lady. Tory Burch Resort 2023

August 4, 2022 | Design & Culture by Ed

Tory Burch is going through a renaissance. Her latest collections are just so, so good. “You can only control so much in your life at the moment, and one of the things you can control is the way you dress and how you look. I think that’s an incredible creative outlet. Individual creative expression is what I’m really interested in right now.” A year ago, the experience of the pandemic led Tory Burch to Claire McCardell, a post-war designer celebrated for the chic functionality of her dresses. Fast forward to 2022, Burch is leaning into more eccentric and freer style, which is still in dialogue with McCardell’s design ethos. Resort 2023 is all about details: the plastic charms fringing the waistline of cropped jackets; the parachute lining peeking from underneath a-line skirts (it’s removable); the lurex fuzz of popover knits. These are the building blocks of the Tory Burch wardrobe, but they’re not square or boring. Quite the opposite. A sense of play permeates the season, whether it’s the raffia tassels that accent the baggy cargo pants she paired with a sleeveless tweed peplum top or the two-piece dress consisting of a little wrap shirt over a yoke-waist skirt with lots of volume (padding at the hips and hem give it shape). Most experimental are a pair of party looks whose tops and skirts are cut on the round with zig-zag edges trimmed in beads. In mismatched but complementary floral prints, these outfits put the emphasis on craft and quirk. Though it’s rooted in American sportswear, with its mix-and-match possibilities, the collection wears its utility lightly. It looks like a lot of fun.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram!

Rise. Roland Mouret Resort 2023

August 2, 2022 | Design & Culture by Ed

Last autumn’s news of Roland Mouret‘s collapse into administration was yet another reality check for the fashion industry: the consequences of global pandemic, from inflation to dynamically changing customer patterns, have no mercy. But with a surprising resort 2023 presence, it seems that the London-based designer’s label is rising from the ashes. For his first offering under newly-formed umbrella company SP Collection (owner of Self Portrait), Mouret brought forth fresh energy, while acknowledging his brand’s heritage. “To exist in the present, you must understand your own history,” said the designer at a showroom set-up in London’s Claridge’s hotel. “Now, it’s time to modernize our signatures to reflect how people want to dress today.” I was never really a fan of Mouret’s fashion – his runway collections felt overworked, the brand’s visual communication lacked freshness and kick. In his return collection, the designer streamlines his offering, presenting the most sublime silhouettes in his repertoire. And, believe it or not, the echoes of his signature “Galaxy” dress still do the work in 2022. Floor-length dresses range from rib-knit cashmere with fluted skirts in lilac, to iridescent micro-sequin gowns in crimson and emerald. Midi and mini-dresses are gently nipped at the waist with ruched and cut-out details. The tailoring is particularly exemplary, with two-piece wool suits in jet black, camel, and magenta featuring exaggerated shoulders and matching straight-cut and flared pants. As a designer who’s attained distinction with his trademark drape and construction, the garments play to his strengths yet feel new with their off-kilter-ness. “We’ve also updated our price points for the contemporary consumer market,” says Mouret. “It was a decision that made perfect sense for where we’re headed.” It seems that the brand is now branching out into the world of party-girl dressing, in addition to still being a go-to for workwear and cocktail attire. Looking forward to see more of the new Roland Mouret brand.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram!

Always In The Sun. Maryam Nassir Zadeh Resort 2023

August 1, 2022 | Design & Culture by Ed

Maryam Nassir Zadeh‘s resort 2023 collection looks like the inside of a well-packed luggage that’s on the way to a summer-perfect, beachy, breezy, always-sunny destination. Sheer camisole tops and slouchy pants that feel just the right kind of vintage-y. Over-sized t-shirts, wrap skirts and denim bermudas in faded neutral colours, looking as if left exposed to sunlight for days. Charming accessories that seem off-and-odd-but-oh-so-good, like the blue taffeta bracelet-scrunchie, funky ornate belts and necklaces with big, ceramic beads. Groovy, hand-made macrame appeared in form of sachets and eclectic inserts, (not) randomly placed on a men’s leather biker jacket’s back or at the pants’ waist. And of course the latest addition to Nassir Zadeh’s brand: the blue towel with MNZ’s logo, made from the finest frotte, resembling the one that would lie by the pool in some lovely, off-the-track boutique hotel by the French Riviera or somewhere in Sicily.