Monday, March 28, 2011

Balenciaga

For as long as I have followed fashion, I have been in love with Nicolas Ghesquière's work at Balenciaga. That may be a bit surprising given my personal style (or not depending on how much you know about Nicolas), but I think that's part of what draws me to the designer's work. Ghesquière offers up a surprise every season, changing the way I see things. I think there's something beautiful about art that needs to be processed in order to be appreciated. Sometimes creators make it too easy, but Nicolas is certainly not one of these creators. This season, unlike last season's punk collection, the overall concept was not so ascertainable. Ghesquière mentioned a "game of proportion" and "shifting points of view" to style.com, but did not note a thematic idea. Having said that, the clothes were no less impressive. There was a certain clarity to the collection that was absolutely lovely. It wasn't minimalism—yawn—but there was something restrained about it. It was certainly less severe than Balenciaga tends to be, but it still pushed the limits of what one might consider beautiful. The bulky, woven pleather jackets at the beginning of the show were probably the most extreme pieces on the runway. Naturally, I found myself in love. The jackets were paired with fluidly draped skirts featuring a fantastic floral print, providing for a more balanced silhouette. Similarly intriguing play with proportions continued throughout the show. Many of the looks included a mid-length leather hemmed skirt that has left me inexplicably enticed. The collection continued with a highly sculptural point of view, with shell-like sweaters and pieces that had folds dancing about them. What emerged was a leaner silhouette that included a long tunic length and a trim pant. The length appeared in an assortment of garments, from simple mid-weight coats to tops that looked almost like armor created from a black disco ball. At Balenciaga, there is often a strength and protection attributed to clothes, but also a deeply personal, more vulnerable point of view alongside it. I personally love to feel enveloped by my clothes, often putting on an oversized leather jacket that serves as a psychological protection from the outside world. The shoes contributed yet another layer to the collection, taking shape as a sick stiletto Mary Jane, which looked perfectly naughty in its height and pointedness. The unification of ideas doesn't seem even feasible, but Ghesquière executes it with grace, alongside Marie-Amelie Sauve, his talented stylist and right hand woman. Together they are making leaps and bounds, pushing fashion forward to an ever-inspiring place.

Aline Weber
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Elsa Sylvan
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Melissa Tammerijn
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Lisanne De Jong
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Anabela Belikova
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Caroline Brasch Nielsen
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Arizona Muse
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Emily Baker
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Carla Gebhart
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Johanna Kneppers-Corbal
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Ann Catherine Lacroix
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Valerija Kelava
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Liu Wen
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Karmen Pedaru
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Freja Beha Erichsen
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Aymeline Valade
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Photos via style.com

Nació de esta manera. Qué fantástico!

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Happy Birthday!

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A Queen was Born This Day. With her birth came a liberation and a birth of a community who revel in love.
My love and appreciation is endless. Happy birthday my Lady.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Balmain

Every season, the collection at Balmain is consistent with an assertive sexiness and a rock and roll sensibility. This season, glam rock was the emphatic message, with notable homage to David Bowie—or Ziggy Stardust, depending on how you see it. Some of the looks also reminded me of Byzantine art. Technically, beading and embellishment were this season's decorative bread and butter. Many of the pieces had a mosaic quality to them, often including mirrored fragments that only seemed to heighten the gleam put forth. Leave it to Christophe Decarnin to present a barrage of sparkle, dizzying in both its effect and intricacy. Looks featuring a metallic blue blazer, a suspender-bearing skirt, and a brilliantly beaded catsuit with the deepest of necklines especially spoke to the Ziggy state of mind. In general, more elaborate jackets or pants were anchored down by relatively simple staples, giving each look a particular effortlessness that makes Balmain so fucking sexy. The models wear heavily decorated pieces with ease; their t-shirts loose and their hair perfectly disheveled. The Balmain girl likes to party and she doesn't care if you like it or not. This collection could not be a better indicator. Why wouldn't you want to look like a disco ball?

On a slightly less cheerful note, Christophe Decarnin was not at the show due to a hospitalization. I have no interest in what his rumored condition is, I just hope that he gets better. What is fashion without such a fearless mind? The party girls and I will be waiting with flowers and things of a naughtier nature. All my love.

Karmen Pedaru
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Freja Beha Erichsen
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Natasha Poly
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Carmen Kass
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Joan Smalls
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Britt Maren
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Sasha Pivovarova
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Tati Cotliar
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Constance Jablonski
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Magdalena Frackowiak
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Daria Pleggenkuhle
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Isabeli Fontana
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Karmen Pedaru
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Freja Beha Erichsen
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Anja Rubik
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Joan Smalls
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Aline Weber
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Kasia Struss
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Tati Cotliar
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Iselin Steiro
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Photos via style.com

Gareth Pugh

Discussing a collection by Gareth Pugh is a novel experience, as the young designer takes little interest in designing clothing with a theme in mind. More than anything it seems that he takes interest in visual development. Pugh's work can be seen as an open dialogue that builds upon itself and even questions itself. Tim Blanks called the Fall/Winter 2011 collection a "consolidation" but I feel that word carries unintended negativity, and could be interpreted as if Pugh isn't creative enough to produce something new. There was no denying that the Pugh DNA was present at the appearance of chevrons, a lust for the future, and the steady flow of black. The familiar aside, Pugh has brought forth an uncharacteristic azure color and continued to explore fluidity in clothing with even more vigor than in his past collections. A series of gilded pieces that could be compared to magnificent and futuristic chain mail closed the show, effectively choking the darkness that is so integral in Pugh's shows. I think he's very aware of his aesthetic and how other people perceive it and hopes to challenge their minds a bit. While in other cases it may come off as lazy, Pugh's singularity across collections is powerful. There's something tribal and perhaps even a bit religious about the way he has framed his creative identity. His convictions are rigorous and severe, but continue to develop quite beautifully.

Melissa Tammerijn
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Roberta Narciso
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Joan Smalls
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Kate King
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Marique Schimmel
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Maddie Kulicka
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Britt Maren
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Constance Jablonski
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Katsia Zingarevich
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Marique Schimmel
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Renee Germaine van Seggern
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Fei Fei Sun
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Frida Gustavsson
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Alla Kostromichova
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Karlie Kloss
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