Red Queen. Comme des Garcons SS15

October 1, 2014 | Design & Culture by Ed

“Why brilliant fashion designers, a notoriously nonanalytic breed, sometimes succeed in anticipating the shape of things to come better than professional predictors, remains one of the most obscure questions in history and, for the historian of culture, one of the most central.” said Marxist historian, Eric Hobsbawm. This sentence perfectly introduces you to Rei Kawakubo’s extraordinary summer, full of blood and roses. Very theatrical it was the SS15 for Comme des Garcons was very politically-historically connected. We switch from 2014 to 1914. Pain, wars, love, favourism, feeling, power- all of these things left a clew in those massive pieces. There was not even a major variation in reds; it was the same rose red, or poppy red, expressed again and again in widely different textures and silhouettes that ran like exploded and tattered versions of an invented history, one of Kawakubo’s own making. It was all RED. And very dramatic and deep. The hair reminded me of Alice in The Wonderland‘s big-headed queen while the exaggerated hoodies felt like The Red Riding Hood. Maybe it’s not hard to live between the world of kids and world of adults? Maybe we shouldn’t initially think of red as blood, but more of love? Rei Kawakubo, the poet of fashion, asks us again a strong question.

Moody Ruffles. Ellery SS15

October 1, 2014January 5, 2024 | Design & Culture by Ed

The Aussie girl, Kym Ellery, does sculptural beauty this time in Paris. The collection is so, so breath-taking. It has so much movement, flair, boldness… the materials used are so gorgeous, that the amazing over-sized ribbons look super effortless and wearable. Ellery always masters best the fun with fabrics- in their Paris-based studio, the real magic happens, making their collection better and better each season. Ellery had two main emphases: creating a lean, attenuated silhouette, and elaborating it with rich textures. The opening look established the theme: a pair of extra-long tweed trousers topped with a mesh undershirt and matching tweed singlet. The singlet had a buoyant flare, but this was a more measured take on the sculptural volumes Ellery has explored in the past. The tailoring was a highlight—lots of great pants—and the shirting, too, done in heavy-duty cottons with a touch of sheen. Ellery also scored with her long, almost monastic tank dresses, which kicked out under the hip. Serene but with a vibrant atmosphere in the air.

Silk Fragility. Haider Ackermann SS15

September 30, 2014 | Design & Culture by Ed

As usual, Haider. You steal the spotlight of Parisian Fashion Week, without having a lot of effort. The summer created by Haider Ackermann is all about flesh-tone silks, backless knitwear and come-undone tailorings. Over-sized sweaters, cool vests, beautiful, blush pink trousers and magical, lilac capes- it all felt like a delicate, breezy summer in Paris. Stiff glossy leather belts orbited skin-tone satin tops and sharp, shoulder-skimming playsuits, while gathered chiffon blouses – slashed to the navel, were loosely tucked into low-slung trousers complete with sporty, racing stripes. Fans of the label’s more androgynous cuts will no doubt be inspired by the sleeveless crepe jackets, floor-length trench-coats and waistcoat tops. Haider Ackermann always ends up on my Parisian favourites. And this dreamy, ethereal surely classifies as one of the most wearable creations yet bt Ackermann. In love with the master-layering as much as in the whole collection. J’adore!

Feather Beauty. A.F. Vandevorst SS15

September 28, 2014September 28, 2014 | Design & Culture by Ed

My favourite Belgian label, A.F. Vandevorst, has just shown a magical collection. Keeping it a bit military, the designer couple introduced beautiful silhouttes and fabric. An Vandevorst and Filip Arickx had come up with a story, about a female pilot flying around the world who parachutes into terra incognita and begins exploring. Which is to say, Vandevorst and Arickx were riffing on parachutes and flight suits, a theme sledgehammered home by the rather extraordinary opening gown of what looked like parachute silk, with a train nearly the length of the runway. The models wore non-chalant gowns, wrapped jackets, red suits, very “natural” head covers and feather embroideries. And these ones were reall amazing. A.F. Vandevorst decorated the whole gown with feathers, making it look couture. But the simple shape of it made it feel (and look) very comfortable. Amazing.

Sun Kissed. Loewe SS15

September 28, 2014August 21, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

J.W. Anderson couldn’t go wrong. His debutant women collection for the Spanish fashion house, Loewe, is a masterpiece. Presented in the UNESCO building, full of concrete everywhere, the suede and drapings of dresses, skirts and bags looked perfect. Jonathan Anderson really studied Loewe’s archives- the brand is famous for its high quality leather. The collection itself was very modern, and of course used a lot of leather, and mostly suede. The pastel dresses had suede looking like to nearly fall out; the beige trench coat looked super effortless with those pants and orange mules; the jackets and tops were all about patent leather; and bags, like the Amazona had a totally new transformation. The t-shirts were embroidered in traditional, Spanish way, with a relaxed theme- a sunny, summer view at Mediterraean bushes full of olive trees and calm animals. The models had their eye-brows bleached, which gave all the looks sophistication, and most of them worn gold, zig-zag earrings. In other words, Anderson brought so much emotional, interesting ideas to the collection, that it simply feels like if his heart belonged to Loewe. And surely, it is.