Not Your Average Ballerina. Acne Studios SS19

July 12, 2018July 12, 2018 | Design & Culture by Ed

I guess many designers, hearing the word ‘ballet’, would go for all shades of pastel pink, do fancy layers of tulle, or keep it ‘sensual’, yet coldly strict. Jonny Johansson, the mind behind Acne Studios, proved in his spring-summer 2019 collection that when fashion collides with ballet, the result doesn’t have to be one of those well-known clichés: or your average, pretty ballerina girl, or that kind of cigarette smoking, drowning in beige lady who’s in fact a ballet teacher. There was something of the incredibly colourful Ballets Russes and their distinct vibrancy; maybe, it’s Edgar Dégas’s Petite Danseuse gone very modern, wearing flip-flops and sneakers after the rehearsals in some other dimension; or maybe, the ballet mood got conveyed so smoothly thanks to the placement of Merce Cunningham posters on t-shirts and jackets. Well, whatever the secret is, Johansson captured the energy, the strength and the beauty of ballet in a very profound way. Also, I adored the way he divided the collection into four ballerina ‘stages’: rehearsal, onstage, off-duty, and evening. From flowing pleated skirts and bodysuits to tracksuits and tuxedos, it might be a wardrobe of a ballet dancer – but don’t take it too literal, as it all looks so approachable and realistic.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.

That’s a Party. Miu Miu Resort 2019

July 11, 2018July 11, 2018 | Design & Culture by Ed

Back from Italy and back to the journal. Now it’s the time to catch up on all the shows that took place during the end of June / beginning of July couture week in Paris. Miu Miu is first up, and it’s not even couture (although it had more flow and fantasy than some of the biggest haute players – Dior and Chanel, I’m looking at you).

Oh boy, we didn’t have a show like this for a while! Miuccia Prada‘s fashion spectacle was staged in the lobby of The Regina Hotel, and you surely know thanks to Instagram and all that Uma Thurman, Stranger Thing’s Sadie Sink, Chloë Sevigny and Gwendoline Christie all walked the show. But there was Naomi Campbell and Rowan Blanchard too, as well as Miu Miu’s classic pack of models, from Adwoa Aboah to Lily Nova. With Madonna’s sensual Justify My Love as the soundtrack, the collection featured everything that’s glamour: feathers, coat-dresses, leopard spots, chic fluffy flip-flops. But the presence of Roman Polański in the front row suggested also another, darker plot twist behind the collection. Rosemary’s Baby seemed to be written all over the line-up, noting the sheer nursery dresses and Lucan Gillespie’s very Mia Farrow haircut (done spontaneously, just before the show). The collection, in overall, is refined and mysterious, but joyous and carefree. Aren’t those Miu Miu’s all-time credentials?

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.

The Look – Valentino AW18

July 4, 2018June 24, 2018 | Design & Culture by Ed

Quite obsessed with this green moment coming from Pierpaolo Piccioli‘s autumn-winter 2018 Valentino runway.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.

Men’s / Spiritual. Wales Bonner SS19

June 24, 2018June 24, 2018 | Design & Culture by Ed

To present a brilliant collection, no major celebrities are needed in the front row, and there’s no need to pay thousands of euros for the show venue. Ask Grace Wales Bonner, who has just released a look-book with her spring-summer 2019 collection for men (and women). The main point behind the season was spirituality and the seek for inner peace, something the designer has been interested in for a while. Wales Bonner found Ram Dass, one of the first people who brought ideas of yoga and meditation to a Western audience, as the key for that relaxed, yet oozing with mystique line-up. Inspirational texts from the spiritual teacher’s book appear printed on loosely fit t-shirts, cotton shirts and over-sized yoga pants. Some read such profound quotes as: “The stillness. The calmness. The fulfillment. When you make love and experience the ecstasy of unity.” But the collection as well has a less laid-back, more celebratory side. Some of the pieces were hand-embellished with shiny sequins and were a nod to craftsmanship originating from India. Beautiful.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.

Re-Invention. Salvatore Ferragamo Resort 2019

June 14, 2018June 14, 2018 | Design & Culture by Ed

It’s the second season of Salvatore Ferragamo‘s re-invention for Paul Andrew and Guillaume Meilland. The two designers managed to wipe off the dust of the Italian house already back in their brilliant debut collection. Now, the question is – will they thrive? And, will the client return to Ferragamo after the year of oblivion? Well, since Phoebe Philo exited Céline and the customer who wants that kind of luxury won’t stay for Hedi Slimane, they can turn to Andrew and Meilland (as well as to Lemaire and Hermes, but why not give a try to an Italian brand?). Knitwear is offered in the most high quality yarns, meanwhile shirting looks, well, like tailorship perfection. Archival prints were used for plissé silk, and the label’s signature Gancio motif was woven on canvas jacquard. Smart integrity between the past, and now. But, wait – the shoes! That’s Paul’s job mainly. Those burgundy boots in eel skin are gorgeous. “The shoes really dictate a lot at Ferragamo; here they have their own special voice” is how he summed up the footwear line. I think there’s bright future for Ferragamo with these guys.