Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen are at a peak in their creative careers, working in a way that feels instinctive rather than overthought – almost uncontrolled in the best possible sense. As the kids say these days, The Row sisters have reached a kind of flow state. Because what else do you call a perfectly cut black suit, nonchalantly topped with a vintage emerald brooch? It’s a statement of pure confidence. READ MY FULL REVIEW HERE.
Back in Milan, Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons read the room with their beautifully wrong Prada collection that challenged the ideas of femininity, beauty and perfection. Their women, wearing creased sack dresses and crude leathers, looked as if they barely woke up, not really caring about their appearances. This new rawness felt unexpected and refreshing amidst all the glossy and flashy moments in Milano.
That new (lack of) energy arrived to Paris. Remember quiet luxury? You thought she’s dead just because Alessandro Michele is doing Valentino? Well, she’s back. But now her name is “give us nothing”. And she’s isn’t that obvious.
Sleepiness and (undeniably good-looking) sloppiness is what The Row’s latest collection emanates with. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen draped their models in greyish wools and cashmeres, wrapped their heads with black felt, and gave them tights (no shoes were in sight). The collection read like a harsh and disciplined exercise in reduction, heavily informed by references to Hermès-era Margiela and early Yohji Yamamoto. This wasn’t the stale minimalism of New York shows (do you even remember that Calvin Klein debut by Veronica Leoni?), but some sort of new level of luxe asceticism. The Olsens know how to intrigue. The brown, cropped mink-fur coat styled with nothing but black tights was a tectonic moment of extreme chic.
Those The Row outings the Olsen twins bring to Paris Fashion Week are impeccable. They are the peak of sophistication, understated luxury and intriguing tailoring, but as well much-needed moments of serenity after nearly a month of constant fashion influx. They also serve as a reminder that longevity resulting from great design and top-notch quality is so much better and more rewarding than the dumb pursuit after newness – which often in contemporary fashion feels rather flat than truly innovative. To the tune of hypnotic 1979 goth anthem “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” by Bauhaus, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen‘s latest offering was presented in a chic hôtel particulier. There was a beautiful opening of all-black looks in the form of The Row’s new coat shape, double breasted, tailored with a wide shouldered ease, a scarf-like panel dropping over one sleeve. Appropriately enough, evening got in on the act too; for some time now there has been the incisive way they’ve been experimenting with all sorts of folding and draping, best seen here on a strapless black ensemble, with sleeves wrapped to cinch the waist. That the Olsens are committed to all manner of creative construction was underscored by so much of that sumptuous outerwear, particularly a (yet another) black coat, masculine and classic in shape, but with the surprise of the shoulder construction was tacked onto the shoulders. Though not everything was dark, dark, dark. Sensational color would appear every now and again: an eau de nil evening dress, magically created out of what looked like interwoven ribbons; a classic clutch coat in vermillion.
Collage by Edward Kanarecki. Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram!
The Row‘s intensely refined autumn-winter 2023 read-to-wear collection matched the couture ambience of the last week. Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen didn’t show in Paris, but dropping a new collection in such specific time-frame speaks for itself. The craft, the tailoring, the materials, the silhouettes. The ultra-luxurious and elegantly-understated vision of the The Row woman (and man) is absolutely haute. The new season offering sees the Olsens’ timeless regulars (masculine boxy suits, cashmere coats with shawl-like capes, over-sized crisp cotton shirts – very Lydia Tár!) combined with an ease of flowing shapes (see the floor-sweeping black skirt styled with a boyish blazer) and chic, Armani-like narrowings at the waist. The colors are all about earthy neutrals – another The Row favorite. Trends come and go, but The Row is a peaceful harbor of eternal fineness.
Collage by Edward Kanarecki. Don’t forget to follow Design & Culture by Ed on Instagram!
While we quickly forgot most of the valuable lessons we told ourselves the pandemic had taught us, it does seem to have affected one aspect of our lives: our approach to clothes shopping. Somehow our choices now feel less fussy, less complicated, more essential. Granted, essentialism has always coursed through the veins of The Row. This season, Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen took it to sublime heights. Shot in the streets of Paris and presented in the Galerie Seguin, their spring-summer 2023 collection portrayed the daily lives of their customers and the way we adapt to changing scenarios throughout the day. Whether it’s different levels of formality – office hours, lunch dates, evening events – or the inside-vs.-outside temperature differences we all increasingly have to deal with in a climate change reality, the clothes we actually wear now have to imbued with certain functions and assets to actually work in our everyday lives. That fact informed a collection of more-than-meets-the-eye garments founded in considered fabric choices and functional design. Putting lightness at the forefront, the Olsens structured suits and dresses in luxurious, breathable linens, while linen trench coats came with fabric coatings that made them feel outerwear-y without defeating the purpose. A number of pieces were instilled with day-to-night folding techniques, allowing the wearer to transform their level of formality. The train of a jute dress, for instance, could be folded into the dress itself and buttoned or let out for the full dramatic effect, the hoods of coats were detachable, and the sleeves of a black dress could be unhooked by way of tiny closures. As an ironic nod to the wardrobe issues we all deal with in the heat, a leather skirt was adorned with creases as a form of texture.
The idea of essentialism also informed the Olsens’ level of details and decoration, or rather lack thereof. Everything was made as minimal as possible but without compromising the sense of drama that made this collection a fashion proposition. They cut away necklines to create plunge shapes, disguised hems and pockets, and removed zips and buttons. In menswear, they gave super-light unlined suiting the structure you usually only get from lining through the kind of fabrication that makes The Row worth its price tag, and proposed the kind of luxe oversized shirts and loose-fitting knits that made you want to invest in a new wardrobe for a changed climate. Heavenly…
Design & Culture by Ed 