What’s Hot (5.10.24)

October 5, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

Helmut Lang Apex Cocoon Jacket

Kassl Pillow Large Oil Tote Bag

AZ Factory Mybody Paneled Stretch-knit Leggings

Magda Butrym Satin Point-toe Mules

Gimme More. Balenciaga SS25

October 4, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

Something was definitely off about this Balenciaga outing by Demna. Not in a conceptual or ironic way – this would be make the collection spark with the designer’s signature knack for disruptiveness. What worries me is spring-summer 2025’s flatness of meaning behind the clothes. The models – who walked on an extra-long, wooden table – opened the show with lingerie, which was actually an illusionist layering of bras and garters on flesh-colored body stockings. Then, the collection shifted to Demna’s well-known twisted take on streetwear. Shrunken polos, garments made out of stitched together hoodies, well-worn baggy jeans… we all know this story. The finale was about eveningwear that was totally mild and whatever. The show was accompanied by a remix of Britney Spears’ “Gimme More“, the ultimate anthem of over-consumption of mass media and pop culture. When I heard it, my first thought was: Demna’s exhausted. We kind of all are.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Nostalgia. Valentino SS25

October 4, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

I found Alessandro Michele‘s runway debut for Valentino a disappointment on many levels. I don’t get the reasoning behind sending down the runway over 80 looks that are so terrifically archaic and deadly retro. Yes, it’s Michele’s prime aesthetic, but it can easily (and quickly) get exhausting. Near the end of his tenure at Gucci, you literally felt an overdose of nostalgia. I really hoped Michele would channel his quirk for the past it in a contemporary-looking way. Let’s remember his Gucci debut was an unexpected gender revolution. But at Valentino, he totally missed the opportunity to show a breakthrough. Also, what’s the actual point of remaking Valentino Garavani’s 1970s and 80s garments in 2024? First, there’s a vintage market for that. Second, it looks absolutely stuffy and dusty without even a drop of irony in the styling.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Contemporary. Loewe SS25

October 4, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

In his 10th anniversary show for Loewe, Jonathan Anderson wasn’t looking back at his all-time hits. It’s Jonathan: he’s a designer that is always looking forward. The delightfully surreal, but not overly on-the-nose collection began with a bouncingly light, flowered, off-the-shoulder crinoline dress. Corseting-free and hands in pockets, the look – which reappearead a couple of times in the show – felt absolutely contemporary and cool (unlike the stuffy prettiness at Alessandro Michele’s Valentino debut). Anderson finds sheer pleasure in messing with classicism. References to classical composers and painters on T-shirts – made in feathers – pictured Mozart, Chopin, Bach, Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, and a Manet soldier boy. “I like this idea that they’re kind of like pinup rock stars,” Anderson said. “Like when you go to a museum or you go to a concert: experiential things that you want to take a memento of with you. The idea that music reminds us of moments in our lives.” Then there were his multiple reimagined French golden age couture dresses, all hoops and semisheer flower prints and trapeze-line silhouettes abbreviated to very short minis. Worn with sneakers, there was nothing fussy about his take on eveningwear. Again, a contemporary feel that many, many designers had a hard time grasping this season.