Men’s – Himalaya. Dries Van Noten AW15

January 25, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Dries Van Noten’s collections always feature some oriental motifs and embroideries. This time, he brought on Tibetan embelishments, Chinese satin and Burmese metal jewellery. The coats covered with flickering mirrors, crystals and other appliques looked so gorgeous. Just like the red sweater cover with knitted prints. There is an air of the nomad about a Van Noten collection. It’s likely something to do with the historical past in Antwerp, Belgium, once a merchant hub of the world, from where Dries started his career. The layering is on master level – khaki bermuda shorts worn over tailored pants. Tank top on a printed shirt. This ethnic mood working on me.

Men’s – Full Frontal. Rick Owens AW15

January 24, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Let’s go straightly to the topic – Rick Owens went full frontal for his AW15 show. Why? The tank top / dresses (however you call them) has holes placed… yep, there. Although it’s not that visible on the photos, some models had their penises spotted. Well… Hussein Chalayan showed women’s pubic hair in his dresses few years ago. But that really stole the spotlight. And Rick earned the ultimate status of the 2015’s biggest provoker. I mean, I don’t see myself wearing nudity in thoes places just like Rick offers. Definitely, that might not be safe for your health! This is a big field of discussion at the moment…”Nudity is the most simple and primal gesture,” Owens said backstage. “It packs a punch. It’s powerful. It’s a straight world now. It says something about being independent. Who else can really get away with this stuff? It’s a corporate world! This was our private moment.” If talking of the clothes, most them revealed the Adam’s apple. But I thinkt that the knitted “thing” seems to look warm… and surely cold-defending.

Men’s – Gender Fuse. Raf Simons AW15

January 24, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Raf Simons is one of those Belgian designers, that always surprise. And, again, I must admit – Raf is much better at his own label than at Dior. Here he can really experiment, have fun. “Youth on a pedestal.” That was Simons explanation of the staging of his show tonight, with its catwalk raised high above the crowd. The models wore almost-floor-length coats, gilets, that could be really analised by the editors.”I wish there could be 10,000 people here tonight,” Simons said of the warehouse on the outskirts of Paris where he staged his show. “A gathering of people, the way it was in the beginning.” After seeing this collection, I thought of first Helmut Lang collections, and Raf Simons archives. This collection, thanks to it’s gender fusing silhouettes, wild doodles placed on the coats, yellow golfs and crotchets, felt so different. Nostalgic. Youthful. Definitely that’s what Raf wanted to produce this season.

Men’s – Russia / China. Gosha Rubchinskiy AW15

January 23, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

After Walter Van Beirendock, Gosh Rubchinskiy is the second designer of the day which brings politics to fashion. This time, we leave Paris and we go to Putin’s Russia, where everything’s strongly connected with Chinese market. Presented in an old Orthodox church, the models wore SPORT sweatshirts, “ugly” white socks and soviet-Russia inspired fur varsity jackets.This entertaining collection saw street-cast models—some as young as 13—transformed into brand-hungry Russian youths of the immediate post-glasnost years, as seen through a Rubchinskiy prism. That’s amazing how Gosha found a way to critisize Putin’s political influenece in today’s Russia. Definitely, if Rubchinskiy presented his collection in Moscow, the next day he would sit in jail – the parody and sense of the whole thing seems to be very visible.

Men’s – Thought Provoking. Prada AW15

January 20, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Back to 90’s? Back to ugliness and uniforms? Prada says so in her recent AW15 collection for men and pre-fall 2015 for women. Kept in black, grey and beige colour palette only, Miuccia Prada made it a bit dull and very melancholic. Every men’s piece seems to be same. Suits, shirts, shoes, bags. The hair also seems to be super common for office-guys who do paper work and this type of stuff. While the girls seem to be as boring as their dates. The only thing that caught the eye was the hair – “A bow wraps a present,” Miuccia mused. “Am I presenting woman as object?” Well, hopefully not. And if talking of the shoes – that’s a horror, in my opinion. A comeback to Aqua World? They seem to be so anti-attractive. As I usually find something amusing and beautiful in Prada’s collections, this time I just can’t.

But one thing’s sure: the shared aesthetic this time was simple. “Uniform, severe, elegant: This is the fashion I like at this moment.” Miuccia seems to be down with her mood. Well, who wouldn’t after this what happened lately in Paris? Now it’s your turn to interpret this collection.