Show Report
This season Owens delivered a new, almost softer, approach to his apocalyptic wardrobe.
Ricks Owens continues to unleash his decisive dark vision on the Paris catwalks. While the gothic revival may have faded away in mainstream fashion, Owens is not ready to renounce his shaded mantle, or retreat from his strong and singular androgynous vision and gender explorations.
Owen’s clarity of design and aesthetic is admirable and his ability to remain focused with his acutely cut, futurist uniforms have won him an international following of Owens’ warriors. His tough clothes successfully migrate from season to season with subtle design changes, which progresses the brand forward, and without loosing its distinct stance on contemporary style.
With leather being Owens’s favourite palette, the summer collections have sometimes faired as diluted offerings of the iconic winters staples. However this season Owens delivered a new, almost softer, approach to his apocalyptic wardrobe.
Floor-sweeping tank dresses in black, charcoal and khaki provide long and elegant shapes on the runway. Intricately cut swathes of fabric engulfed the models, while skirts hung from beneath elongated jersey tops and shirts. Functional jackets came with bulky shoulders and guaranteed the collection did not drown in a fantasy of feminine attire.
While men in skirts and dresses have been explored endlessly on the male catwalks, recent seasons have seen visionaries Comme des Garcons and Yohji Yamamoto re-appropriating the idea. However it seems Rick Owens, an American in Paris, has delivered on giving the story a comprehensible, modern and masculine ending.
