style

Chic Mixture. Victoria Beckham SS20

| Design & Culture by Ed

Victoria Beckham‘s spring-summer 2020 collection is her best for a long while. The show was an incredibly chic mixture of precise tailoring and feminine, floaty dresses inspired by silhouettes of past decades: bit of 20s, bit of 60, bit of 80s. “Lightness, ease and freedom” are the spirit of the collection, as Beckham told the press. It’s good to see that the designer finally freed herself from a Phoebe Philo-filled moodboard and tries something new, something different. The fluid-like dresses, the collection’s highlights, in green, beige and rust are feminine and sensual, yet sophisticated at the same time. Noting that Victoria launches her beauty line under her own brand this week, I’m sure she’s having a very, very good Monday.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.

Naturalness. Margaret Howell SS20

| Design & Culture by Ed

I feel like a dummy, because until this season, I’ve never really taken a serious look at Margaret Howell‘s fashion. Actually, I don’t think the designer calls her work ‘fashion’: it’s far, far from disposability and every season newness. The London-based label’s unfussy, quiet way of being is as charming, as the clothes it produces. The spring-summer 2020 is a classical Margaret Howell line-up: utilitarian, tailored, minimal, but not austere. The loosely-fitted, short-sleeved shirt-dress (that came in different colours and a Lucienne Day graphic pattern) is one of the very few pieces I’ve seen this season that instantly becomes the fine thing to really invest in. Suiting, with higher buttoning, looser cut jackets worn with tapering trousers tucked into slouchy socks and flat leather sandals, other times collared shirts atop Bermuda shorts. Everything kept in a beautiful, warm, earthy colour palette. It’s a yes, yes, yes!

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.

Tulle, Knits and Love. Molly Goddard SS20

| Design & Culture by Ed

Hello London! And again, I’m in love with Molly Goddard. Even though her spring-summer 2020 collection is all about her well-known signatures – dresses made of acres of tulle and delightful colour palette consisting of candy pink, lettuce green and bold blue – there’s a certain factor behind Goddard’s style that never gets boring. Her fashion is not about being precious or pristine. Those looks are made for summer picnics, outdoor walks, brunches with your friends… also, I’m really obsessed with Molly’s expanding selection of knits. The ribbed sweaters with big bows and ties at the shoulder are so good. And there’s nothing better than a classical black cardigan and a voluminous, sheer skirt in coral.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.

Colmar A.G.E. x Shayne Oliver

| Design & Culture by Ed

The adventure of the designer Shayne Oliver as the guest designer of Colmar A.G.E. ends with the New York based designer and founder of Hood by Air, creating a very personal interpretation of the archives with an inspired collection, that is decidedly less extreme than the previous two. Consisting of a colour palette of black, flame red and electric blue paired with a hi-vis fabric, which is applied both as detailing and as the actual fabrication of the garments. The rubber patches which have been a signature of the designer’s A.G.E. collections are placed on sleeves and the back of pieces, ranging from jackets to trousers, sweatshirts and T-shirts in an underground mood. The a-gender collection references the needs of a style conscious public, with a nod to urban lifestyles.
Within the collection, jackets come in different cuts and lengths. An oversized parka is quilted with a hood, press studs and front zip. A bomber jacket comes with a stretch knit collar, waistband and sleeves, with a light down jacket appearing classic only to reveal that the piece is actually turned inside out, with the seams exposed. Salopette pants are lightweight with a small pocket on the front. A variety of soft fleece sweatshirts, in different silhouettes come with statement hi-vis pockets, with the T-shirts reimagined with the statement applied patch telling the story of the unique collaboration between the two worlds of history (Colmar) and visionary (Oliver). The 14 piece collection will be available from September 2019 through 11 leading stores globally, including Ssense, Luisaviaroma, jofre, Block 60.
For the campaign, Oliver enlisted photographer Jordan Hemingway, who has been responsible for capturing the previous two collections. London based artist Hemingway, has previously collaborated with Emporio Armani, Grace Wales Bonner, Gucci and Roberto Cavalli. For the campaign the designer and photographer street cast models, who they felt embodied the spirit of the collection.

The Law of Batsheva. Batsheva SS20

| Design & Culture by Ed

Within just a couple of seasons, a Batsheva dress became a classic in New York. No wonder why: her signature prairie dresses, often made out of vintage textiles, are comfortable, flattering and the wearer never really has to think how to wear it: they work with everything. Batshave Hay‘s spring-summer 2020 show at the New York Law School (fun fact: before starting her label at home, Batsheva was a lawyer) was an actual lecture. Jamieson Webster (a psychoanalyst), Chiara Bottici (a philosopher) and Melissa Ragona (an art historian and theorist), three academics in three diverse fields, engaged critically with Batsheva’s newest collection, while models walked through a lecture hall. Writer and podcaster Aminatou Sow introduced and moderated the panel. “They make me feel like a pioneer woman who can’t be fucked with,” Sow said of Batsheva’s garments. The lecture was called “Neck, Wrist, and Ankle: Recurrence in Batsheva’s Clothing” and each speaker presented her essay accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation of pertinent details and helpful quotes. Hay’s panel of critics laid out lots of excellent points, including a description of her clothing as “defense of the tender areas of the body”. Fashion being intellectual is a rare, but great sight. Especially, when the clothes keep up with the theory. The prairie dress was present in the line-up for a few times, in tiny florals, polka-dots and print patchwork, but there were also some new additions: blazers with big, Victorian shoulders (speaking of the Victorian topic, the ‘Victorian Secret’ pun on the finale dress was brilliant, by the way), a ruffled day dress in a red zebra pattern and gorgeous shoes made in collaboration with Brother Vellies.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.