I suppose I should follow up on my last post and actually write an analysis of a runway show, and what better to talk about than the Raf Simons Fall/Winter 2018 Collection.
The theme, appropriately, was a feast complete with piles and banquets of fruits, wine, cheeses and meats that guests were encouraged to eat, Simons' interpretation of the reckless abandon of the current rave and drug culture - a sort of hedonistic orgy that would slowly deteriorate the runway over the course of the show.
Colors also played a part in reflecting the drug culture, with lots of vibrant saturated pastel colors referencing the bright playful colors of pills. This can be seen in Simons' deconstructed hoodies, and on the leather full-arm length gloves on his models.
There were several showings in the show that would drive the season's offerings. The first and most heavily shown was the dickey, the turtleneck/bib type top that would be shown on the majority of looks in the show. The deconstructed sweater, a trademark of Simons', could be worn in different ways, as a bib, a scarf, and worn sideways as in look 29, shown below.
The counterpart of this sweater was the deconstructed hoodie, with "DRUGS" screenprinted across the chest, shoving the theme in your face with loud colors.
Another big part of the collection was satin, which was used in trousers and coat linings, as in look 1, as well as on shirts. Earlier on in the year, Raf Simons also used satin heavily for his first show taking over Calvin Klein, in satin re-imagings of Western clothes.
Look 1 essentially sums up the entire collection, a strong showing of outerwear with satin lining, with Simons' deconstructed knitwear, slim satin trousers and white leather boots. Very tonal, very well put together.
Look 15 showcased the other side of his show; emphasizing a dark but playful atmosphere, and drapey knits.
Look 40 was cool, it was a very cohesive tonal outfit that I could see on the shelves of high end boutiques.
Honestly, I'm not a great fan of this collection. Thematically, it was very interesting but that's all I can really say about it. Raf has used great sources of inspiration for his show, and it does seem very cohesive, but the show almost seemed more important than the clothes themselves, and the feast seemed like a gimmick to get people to pay attention to Raf Simons in 2018.
Simons' sweaters have always been polarizing. Raf has showcased deconstructed sweaters before, with asymmetric sleeves, cropping, distressing, and a piece that has undoubtedly captured the attention of hypebeasts everywhere, the now-iconic oversized "I Love New York" sweater, with parabolic sleeves and a slight crop to the body. I'm a fan of oversized knitwear, I'm not a fan of Simons' oversized knitwear. This season's bib would be another addition to my list of Raf sweaters that I don't particularly like, and I'm not looking forward to high-street derivatives of it. It's the next generation of side-zips, and honestly we can leave that shit behind in 2015.
The tailoring in the collection was very nice. It seemed like a more toned-down version of the boxy tailoring that has flooded runways since Demna drove it to popularity at Balenciaga. The unstructured 3-button blazers were very interesting, and the outerwear was very well done, at the expense of losing its "Raf-ness".
I'm not gonna give a rating out of 10, because fuck that, you make your own judgements. All I can say to close this review off is,
You can view the collection here.
Hell, if you don't like my review you can look at some other reviews, from Vogue,Hypebeast, and WWD.
The Show
This collection, dubbed "Youth in Motion", shown in New York's Fashion Week: Men showcased Simons' commentary about the youth drug culture in Europe during the 70s. A key source of inspiration behind his collection was the film Christiane. F, a film that followed the titular Christiane, through the drug scene of Berlin, and it is directly referenced in graphic printed tees with Christiane's profile on them.The theme, appropriately, was a feast complete with piles and banquets of fruits, wine, cheeses and meats that guests were encouraged to eat, Simons' interpretation of the reckless abandon of the current rave and drug culture - a sort of hedonistic orgy that would slowly deteriorate the runway over the course of the show.
Colors also played a part in reflecting the drug culture, with lots of vibrant saturated pastel colors referencing the bright playful colors of pills. This can be seen in Simons' deconstructed hoodies, and on the leather full-arm length gloves on his models.
Key Pieces
There were several showings in the show that would drive the season's offerings. The first and most heavily shown was the dickey, the turtleneck/bib type top that would be shown on the majority of looks in the show. The deconstructed sweater, a trademark of Simons', could be worn in different ways, as a bib, a scarf, and worn sideways as in look 29, shown below.
The counterpart of this sweater was the deconstructed hoodie, with "DRUGS" screenprinted across the chest, shoving the theme in your face with loud colors.
Another big part of the collection was satin, which was used in trousers and coat linings, as in look 1, as well as on shirts. Earlier on in the year, Raf Simons also used satin heavily for his first show taking over Calvin Klein, in satin re-imagings of Western clothes.
Looks I liked
Look 1 essentially sums up the entire collection, a strong showing of outerwear with satin lining, with Simons' deconstructed knitwear, slim satin trousers and white leather boots. Very tonal, very well put together.
My PERSONAL Opinion:
Honestly, I'm not a great fan of this collection. Thematically, it was very interesting but that's all I can really say about it. Raf has used great sources of inspiration for his show, and it does seem very cohesive, but the show almost seemed more important than the clothes themselves, and the feast seemed like a gimmick to get people to pay attention to Raf Simons in 2018.
Simons' sweaters have always been polarizing. Raf has showcased deconstructed sweaters before, with asymmetric sleeves, cropping, distressing, and a piece that has undoubtedly captured the attention of hypebeasts everywhere, the now-iconic oversized "I Love New York" sweater, with parabolic sleeves and a slight crop to the body. I'm a fan of oversized knitwear, I'm not a fan of Simons' oversized knitwear. This season's bib would be another addition to my list of Raf sweaters that I don't particularly like, and I'm not looking forward to high-street derivatives of it. It's the next generation of side-zips, and honestly we can leave that shit behind in 2015.
The tailoring in the collection was very nice. It seemed like a more toned-down version of the boxy tailoring that has flooded runways since Demna drove it to popularity at Balenciaga. The unstructured 3-button blazers were very interesting, and the outerwear was very well done, at the expense of losing its "Raf-ness".
I'm not gonna give a rating out of 10, because fuck that, you make your own judgements. All I can say to close this review off is,
don't worry A$AP Rocky, I'm not gonna touch your Raf.
You can view the collection here.
Hell, if you don't like my review you can look at some other reviews, from Vogue,Hypebeast, and WWD.