In his first show since leaving Dior, Raf Simons has severed ties with the French fashion house in more ways than one. The theme of the collection, according to the designer, is Nightmares and Dreams. Sending hugely oversized knits down the runway, models drowned under destroyed-edged cricket sweaters and sportswear, the exacerbated silhouettes shrouding the models.
Bold lettering placed randomly yet selectively on fraying hemlines and jagged sleeves alluded to a sort of apocalyptic Americana, where the American dream becomes the American nightmare.
The oversize theme continued over well-fit crisp shirts and cropped tailored trousers, becoming Michelin-Man inspired parkas and boxy vintage tweed coats, musing a very British style juxtaposed against the all-American influence. Outerwear was very much the creative focus of the show, overshadowing the almost identical shirt and trousers present in most of the looks.
It felt chaotic, archaic even after his structured minimalist beauty at Dior. Beneath the surface as well as above, the collection could be seen as Simons’ way of shedding his Dior past, just as the hemlines shedded their wool.
But amidst all this carefully structured chaos, perhaps it was the very first look that was the most symbolic – a wrecked blue sweater, and defiantly placed on the hem? A slightly damaged, torn-away letter D.
by Thomas Marrington