DANCING AT DUSK. A moment with Pina Bausch's The Rite of Spring.
MERRYLL ROGGE, BELGIUM. Impressive resume having been at Marc Jacobs and Dries Van Noten both for a number of years. She is now in the infancy of her womenswear collection designing with future focused fabrics launching the label just before the world shut down in February 2020. Rogge's photoshoots are stunning, her line as she explains is 'seeing the beauty in very mundane elements, my 75 year old godmother pops by and loves all the pieces'. It's very Dries influence, yet edgier - I love it.
A. ROEGE HOVE. DENMARK. Previously a knitwear designer for Cecilie Bahnsen, Amelie is based in Copenhagen and behind cult label A. Roege Hove. A conceptual knitwear brand that challenges traditions with a modern and artistic approach to original craftsmanship. There is a playful and provocative edge to her creations as they explore the fine lines between clothing and skin, incorporating form-fitting silhouettes and semi-sheer details. Her designs really celebrate the female form.
WALES BONNER. Film set in Ghana. Volta Jazz (2021) a film made in collaboration with Joshua Woods to present the Spring / Summer 2022 collection.
BOTTER. PARIS. Contemporary sustainable menswear blending elements of street-wear with traces of Caribbean-inspired power dressing. Rushemy Botter & Lisi Herrebrugh founders and since been appointed creative directors Nina Ricci (since 2018). Botter use local eco-conscious manufacturers, utilize recycled materials.
The South Bank Show - John Galliano Documentary, 1996. (Givenchy 95, Dior 96-2010)
CHOPOVA LOWENA. LONDON. Juxtaposing sportswear with recycled folkloric fabrics, deadstock materials (often in the form of pillowcases and aprons) and traditional craft techniques. Their ethical dogma translates to their employment of skilled female artisans employed in Bulgaria.
KWAIDEN EDITIONS. LONDON. Couple from Antwerp producing high-end Womenswear with menswear code. Tailored, gorgeous use of color blocking.
THAT LOOKS. NEW ZEALAND. A stoppable portfolio, collaborating with independent & emerging brands & designers, to bring you intentionally selected pieces to help you create a forward-thinking closet. 'Collections' are presented four times a year, in hope for a step away from fast-fashion into a sustainable future.
RUBY REDSTONE. LONDON/NYC. Ruby is a fashion historian 'dressing for the present day' but what I love most about her is her patreon monthly newsletter accounting the intersection of dress history and the modern day. Traditionally she plucks a topic per month (ie color 'orange') and takes you through her own historical research, beautiful images of clothing past and present, fabric samples from bygone wardrobes, creating a scrapbook of sorts that is always rich with resources. Link will lead to the newsletter 'Old Fashioned.'
The Madness Of Boy George documentary, 2006.
ELENA VELEZ. WISCONSIN. Studying at both Parsons School of Design & Central Saint Martins. The womenswear aesthetic is "aggressive delicacy", inspired by her upbringing near the industrial activity of the Great Lakes, as well as brutalist architecture and the Belle Epoque. Velez has famously built her brand around Midwest craftsmanship and community in her hometown of Milwaukee, where she hopes to one day set up a production hub; “entirely self-sufficient atelier, maker space, small scale factory in Milwaukee”
MARTINE ROSE. LONDON. Est 2007. Evolved from a tightly edited shirting collection she begun with a small T-shirt brand, LMNOP, run with Tamara Rothstein – now her stylist. Martine Rose is inspired by her Jamaican-British heritage and her deep interest and personal involvement in the music and high / low melting-pot cultures of London. Photo featuring Cate Blanchett in AW18 tshirt and SS19 jeans image by Sharna Osborne in Wmag
PRAYING. USA. The brand is rebooting Y2K nostalgia with its post-internet inspired womenswear using extreme online marketing to create a darkness that underscores the simplicity of the label. Their e-commerce site is reminiscent of a low-fi Geocities fansite and as Vogue put it 'Praying transforms their simple creations into something more sinister, perverse, and wanted'. Albeit one of their slogans looks a lot like British heavy metal band VENOM's... but seems fans of the label either don't know or don't mind.
RICK OWENS interviewed by André Leon Tally. 1997.
WALES BONNER. LONDON. Grace Wales Bonner is a British fashion designer, whose work “addresses the politics of identity, sexuality, and race through projects that delicately balance multinationalism with a sense of personal subjectivity”. In 2014 she founded the London-based label Wales Bonner, originally specialising in menswear. She won LVMH Prize for Young Fashion Designers 2016
Marc Jacobs Louis Vuitton documentary, 2007.
THEBE MAGUGU. SOUTH AFRICAN. Luxury RTW label that also presents multidisciplinary capsule projects including, Faculty Press is an annual ‘zine. Magugu is known for his thoughtful and inventive collections that comment on history, culture, and politics.
BIANCA SAUNDERS. LONDON. Est 2017, menswear referencing classic streetwear and avant-garde couture. She is part of BFC’s NEWGEN program. Saunders has Black-Caribbean roots, the only Black person in her year at both Ravensbourne & Kingston, race has since formed the nucleus of Saunders’ work. Commissioned to curate a live window display for Gareth Pugh at Selfridges London. Latest denim on the runway was sponsored by Isko, a major certified producer of organic and recycled material, based in Turkey.
COMMISSION. NYC. Est 2018 by 3 friends who's common link was the desired to create a brand based on "memories of our mothers from the ’80s and ’90s.” All growing up in Asia their clever reimagining of the chintzy clothing worn by women of that generation is blended with more clean and classic design. The aesthetic trades largely in the silhouettes of that era—the fitted pencil skirt, the long and lean pantsuit, the languid slip dress—but everything is impeccably cut and considered in a current vein. Prints are inspired by the cheesy gift wrap, tablecloths, and couch covers that were common to Asian households.
Punch Drunk Love, 2002. Paul Thomas Anderson film.
WEEZER. Live in Germany. 1996.
PERMANENT VACATION. MELBOURNE. Future focused womenswear, socially & ethically responsible, championing slow fashion with season-less high quality clothing.