Comme Des Garçons at The MET

May 1, 2017 | Design & Culture by Ed

Autumn-winter 2000

Today, Rei Kawakubo‘s revolutionary and incomparable contribution to fashion will be honored at The MET ball, ahead of the exhibition opening this Thursday. Only the second show dedicated to a living designer in the institution’s history (the first was Yves Saint Laurent in 1983), it’s a testament to the radical experimentation with garments of the 74-year-old, whose dedication to ‘the art of in-between’ has earned her a cult fandom. Forget the celebs, who I doubt will wear any Comme Des Garçons with passion tonight (really, don’t make me laugh, Katy Perry). Here are my seven alternative red carpet looks, coming straight from Kawakubo’s universe.

Autumn-winter 2012 – This collection shaped my love for fashion. That’s a fact.

Autumn-winter 2017

Spring-summer 2015

Autumn-winter 2016

Spring-summer 1997

Spring-summer 2017

All collages are by Edward Kanarecki, the author of the blog.

Body. Comme Des Garçons AW17

March 13, 2017 | Design & Culture by Ed

First thoughts after seeing Rei Kawakubo‘s Comme Des Garçons collection for autumn-winter 2017 (written chronologically). Post-apocalyptic vision of Nicki Minaj’s / Kim Kardashian’ bodies. A Kawakubo human changes into an over-sized mushroom. Recycling is not only ecological; it’s artistic.

Rei’s collection is the new radical. Anti-fashion. Intepret it the way you want. But don’t think of it in terms of ‘clothes’, because these garments can’t be classified that way.

French Love. Jacquemus AW17

March 1, 2017 | Design & Culture by Ed

The anticipation before Simon Porte Jacquemus‘ autumn-winter 2017 was growing, as the designer posted three, very special photos on his Instagram account. On each, the show invitation was pictured. And they were signed for Pablo Picasso, Manitas de Plata and Francois Gilot – a pack of cult personalities, who shaped the cultural world of Spain and France in the 20th century. One thing was sure – Jacquemus won’t disappoint this season, “inviting” those three personalities to the show.

And he didn’t. That was ‘chic’. The pure quintessence of this word. From the miniature bags and over-sized to geometrical jackets and flirty dresses. Surprisingly, black was the collection’s main colour, while the designer is rather known for bold shades or simple white. But the collection was far from dull. This sense of darkness made the statuesque coats look refined, mature. You could really notice the hidden beauty of this collection, which keeps so much of the designer’s intimacy. His uncle was a bull-fighter: that’s from where you’ve got the sculpted, matador hats. Little, bejewelled buttons and buckles were a nod to Christian Lacroix, one of Simon’s biggest fashion idols. “When I was a child, I grew up dreaming of Christian Lacroix, who I saw in my mother’s magazines, and meant fashion to me” is how he explains his life-time obsession with the legendary designer, who never said a ‘no’ to signature, over-the-top splendour.

Although this collection would have stolen more than one heart of old Parisian boheme, Jacquemus focuses on his contemporary girl from the real world. Giving her a dream, a story. “It was about this Parisian girl who wears couture who falls in love with a gypsy in the south of France. She tries to be like a gypsy, but she cannot—she is too couture!” There’s this current mania for French chic, which usually ends on ripped denim and not washed hair (according to best-selling books with style tips). But Jacquemus, with his unique, deeply rooted sensibility, brings chic to women of today.

Jacquemus

Idiosyncratic. Eckhaus Latta AW17

February 17, 2017February 17, 2017 | Design & Culture by Ed

Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta of Eckhaus Latta, like other New York-based designers (whether that’s The Row or Vaquera), aren’t satisfied with the current state of United States. To that extend, that (according to Cathy Horyn of New York Mag) Latta and Eckhaus stopped working on their autumn-winter 2017 collection in November, discouraged by the election. But then, something sparked. “We just designed what we wanted,” Latta told Horyn. And that’s noticeable in the clothes – the designers, by confronting the reality, wanted to design freely. Will it sell? It doesn’t matter that much. But I doubt these semi-hippie floral dresses with velvet sleeves and boiled knits in earthy colours won’t find a place in a wardrobe of, let’s say,an art curator. There’s no main theme behind the collection, but rather an off-beat take on such essentials like blazers (voluminous and boldly coloured here) or a skirt (lenght adjustable). Specific, conceptual character of Eckhaus Latta clothing can’t be precisely conveyed by usual models. That’s why Zoe and Eckhaus do their best to invite people with passion for what they do to walk their shows. This season you could spot super-stylist Camille Bidault-Waddington, multi-disciplinary artist Julian Klincewicz and actress and writer India Salvor Menuez along other creative individuals and designers’ friends.

#InstaLOVE – December 2016

December 13, 2016January 6, 2017 | Design & Culture by Ed

@bfgf

I am an Instagram maniac and I openly confess that I spend too much time on filtering my feed. But it’s irresistible, when you have so many great accounts to follow! If you are ready for a dose of beautifully curated walls, inspiring photos and delightful shots – see my December recommendations!

@larryhofmann / A model, who walked for everybody, from Tom Ford to Dior, taking some truly subversive photographs for off-beat magazines during her free-time. But for Larissa Hofmann that’s not enough. She’s also an artist, who does spilled coffee drawings (literally). The effect? Spontaneous, far from perfect, yet intriguing study of human body. For committed Egon Schiele fans. Full series coming soon, so keep your eye on her Instagram feed.

@virgomood / All things reminiscent of a virgo’s mood. I’m a virgo, so naturally I’m in love with this account.

@bfgf / An art brand inspired with comfort, beauty and humour. Scarves, blankets and pillows, all covered with childish motifs, curvy silhouettes and stereotipically American symbols. With love from Los Angeles. Buy it all here.