Raf Simons showed his second ready-to-wear collection for Dior today-- his vision for the house has been very different from the acclaimed John Galliano but it is now picking up quite a following among fashion's elite. All eyes in the fashion world scrutinize Dior collections each season as the house carries so much timeless importance. With Raf the new head designer of Dior, many are quick to compare his shows to John Galliano's exuberant displays of perfection. Where John focused on intricate, more artistic musings in his collections, Raf has turned his focus to simplistic haute couture and carried a heavy reminder of Chanel. His show for Paris fashion week did not quite show anything new but it did pick up a slight offering of a futuristic and indulgent direction he may be headed with a few more seasons at the creative reigns.
Well-suited:
The looks that opened the show were rather elegant. The deep cut of some of the suits added a sweet sexiness that made the heavier fabric look very chic. The suits hinted at the dark color pallete used through this collection-- a large blend of black and white with small hints of color that were slightly more reminiscent of spring. The most important complaint about Raf's past ready-to-wear collection that has shown up again here is that these looks would not look very flattering on the average woman. Raf's tailoring tends to either accentuate the hips or use bulky fabric. The second look above, for instance, with baggy pants and a rather loose fit everywhere, may look a bit unflattering on the average client. A timeless debate in fashion shows: are the clothes only good for models? Time will tell but with so many peplums on the runway, one may not need to worry about the matter until peplums grow tiresome.
A few elegant pops of color were used in the mainly black and white collection. The dress with the high and low hem in blue and white was very chic. Even the black and white dress showing a flowery peplum stood out for a small, careful hint of daring pop (at least for Raf). Where the color pop fell flat was on the dresses that were just too simplistic-- a sheer skirt or a v-neck don't tend to add enough extravagence.
Looks that stood out were black and white with a supreme attention to detail and cut. They may have made for the best looks of the show, especially the black dress with a small white panel at the top of the skirt.
The knitwear pieces were, surprisingly, one of the standout pieces of the show and looked the most pretty. The detail is lovely and helped to carry the elegant, minimalistic collection.
Where the show peaked interest for me was with the slight theatrical element. Hate it or love it, Raf seems to have found a distinct influence from Laurie Anderson and he used it with the show's music (see video above). A few have referred to it as painfully distracting while I call it sweetly mesmerizing. The tone of the show takes a slightly quirky vibe and is reminscent of an Alexander McQueen show-- the large, futuristic, mirrored balls on the runway are both a compelling element and a reason to have hope that Raf will take a step forward into his own element at a later date and give us some Galliano extravagence. For now, I'm quite alright with focus on tailoring and sweet simplicity- it gives us a reason to appreciate Raf and his attention to the modern woman.
Images from: style.com
No comments:
Post a Comment