Multi-Faceted. Comme des Garçons SS17

October 8, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Spring-summer 2017, in overall, is a season of optimism and joyous colours. But Rei Kawakubo never was, and will be, a comformist, who cares about current tendecies. The latest Comme des Garçons outing saw a line of the biggest, or even the most gargantuan silhouettes that have ever appeared on a runway. All in black, white, red and with hints of tartan plaid, the voluminous dresses and cocoon-coats made the models’ bodies (and heads) “drown”. Those weren’t clothes any longer, but wearable sculptures, which challenge the frequently over-used statement “fashion is art“. Actually, there’s not much sense in seeking inspirations behind Kawakubo’s work – her creativity, and mind, is a multi-faceted universe, where nothing is what it seems.

Europe. Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood SS17

October 6, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood is a love affair between those two designers both in fashion, and in life. It’s the second season where Andreas fully leads the main-line of Westwood’s punk-empire, and it’s madly good. Inspired with European cultures, Kronthaler took a glance at Slavic symbolism, and sent out a model wearing a voluminous, straw garment which might be a dress (or a coat). Heavily ornamented bustier necklines were exaggerated, too, but this time the direction turned to Marie Antoinette times and pre-revolution France. The model in a drifty, multi-coloured frame was an abstract vision of a woman at a typically Dutch market stall. It perceivable that the creative director is intrigued with Old Europe’s contrasts and history – he cleverly delivered those accents in a humorous, very dramatic way. But the collection isn’t only about the past. It smartly moves the topic of feminism (and femininity), so something that still triggers so many intense discussions in few European countries. A jersey dress with trompe l’oeil illustration of naked body, or a violently ripped skirt which exposed spring-summer 2017 swimwear were the most thoughtful, yet catchy looks.

Colour Palette. Haider Ackermann SS17

October 6, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

January of next year means a big debut during men’s autumn-winter 2017 season: Haider Ackermann was recently named the new creative director of Berluti, one of the leading menswear brands. Ackermann has already got used to a pretty light schedule, with two collections for women, and two for men – how will his new role affect his work at his namesake label? Time will show.

But let’s focus on the present. Haider’s latest collection for women is classically Ackermann, which means sleek, masculine silhouettes, lots of draping and a kind of rebellious, rock & roll attitude. However, spring-summer 2017 differed from the designer’s last few seasons with it’s colour blast. High-waisted pants and jackets in lovely pastel-pink; long, pleated skirts in energetic orange and yellow; a loosely fit suit worn by Iris Strubegger looked tempting in jade-green. It’s not the first, when Haider nails it with his unique colour palette, but this collection is a killer. Just like the spiky hair, resembling punk tomahawks. There was just one thing I was quite unpleasantly surprised to see – the t-shirts with slogans. After a Dior show, which was based on a basic idea of a tee, “Be Your Own Hero“ or “Silent Soldier“ type of signs just didn’t fell right, noting Haider Ackermann’s poet-like aesthetic. The defiant mood is quite perceivable, so why make it even more clear?

All That Jazz. Undercover SS17

October 4, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Jun Takahashi is the designer behind one of the most avant-garde brand originating from Japan – Undercover. Every collection delivered by him is a separate story, subverting the reality of ready-to-wear into something much more sophisticated, nearly magical. For spring-summer 2017, Jun investigated the world of jazz, his favourite music genre. However, it’s not the mood of Chicago musical and sultry-hot “And All That Jazz” song! Saxophones were printed in an old-fashioned, trompe l’oeil-style on t-shirts and wide pants, while the last, spectacular looks were three leather outfits kept in a collage-like patchwork of drums, keyboards and trumpets. A new, fresh glance at a ‘dandy’ – worth considering next spring.

A Matter of Feminism. Dior SS17

October 3, 2016October 3, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Today in Poland, thousands of brave women and great men walked down the streets wearing black. They were protesting in solidarity against an anti-abortion law, which is meant to be introduced by the Polish government – in other words, instead of spreading sexual awareness and wider access to contraception, politicians want to utterly limit women’s rights to their bodies in my country. And all of that happens at the same time when Paris Fashion Week is at its full spin. Rarely does a fashion week glamorama relate to reality, and it’s nearly a non-sense to compare those two, completely different universes. But still, Dior‘s spring-summer 2017 burns in my head intensely, noting today’s events.

A few months ago, Maria-Grazia Chiuri, a former designer of Valentino (she worked with Pierpaolo Piccioli, who’s now the head of the brand), was announced as the new creative director of this historic French maison. Yes, you’ve read that correctly: a woman is taking Dior under her wings. Chiuri definitely made history with her appointment, and her step forward highlighted that it’s an ultimate end of a women-less era in fashion… which is, ironically, mostly created for women. Trust me, I was extremely excited about her debut collection. But when I saw the entire show, I felt disgusted. A dummy knew that Maria-Grazia would hit the topic of her own phenomenal appearance in this brand.

In result, she delivered t-shirts with slogans like “we should all be feminists“. How. Banal.

From a position of a female fashion designer, who did Valentino, and now does Dior, being a “feminist” should give an example to millions of people – really, the platform of influence is huge. But in the end, it’s about a t-shirt, which will surely cost approximately 200 euros (or more?). Looking down, we’ve got a meticulously embroidered tulle dress, which will, hah, cost a car. I love fashion, and this industry, but I’m frustrated with the way such important topics as “feminism” is easily printed and tagged around. It’s just about being desperately relevant. It’s like the spring-summer 2015 collection by Chanel, where Karl Largerfeld sent out a line of XS-sized models in couture tweeds to protest in a faux demonstration. In my very personal opinion, coining the term “feminism” can’t be anyhow compared to egalitarian (Valentino and Chanel are far from affordable), or can’t be approached lightly, without a second thought. And while I’m still in the mood of protests and outrage, seeing a fashion collection which is “trying” to be feminist hurts.

Ok, let me chill. Do you want to see real feminism in fashion? Rei Kawakubo at Comme des Garçons. She is the founder of her entire company, and she continues to thrive as an independent owner of it. Phoebe Philo is the embodiment of feminism at Céline, where she creates wearable, everyday clothes for every kind of women. It’s pricey, but a Philo piece is an investment for life. While at Valentino, we’ve got ballerina dresses, tons of embellishments and Dior-logo heels – barely classics. Not that Maria-Grazia Chiuri is a bad designer, or anything like that. I just hope that her tenure at Dior won’t end with a pack of short-sighted slogans.