A.F. Vandevorst PFW S/S 15 Showlist

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Super Star
Jan 25, 2012
2,322
1,515
Vivienne Rohner (O)
Jane Grybennikova
Deimante Misiunaite
?
Kristy Kaurova
Kristina Kulyk
Monika Jablonczky
Anastasia Ivanova
?
Brogan Loftus
Alla Kostromichova
Shao Qing
Irina Nikolaeva
??
Lenka Varvarova
Talisa Quirk
Nika Cole
Sherry Q
Maggie Jablonski (C)
 
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Review

Today's A.F. Vandevorst show was an interesting mix of poetry and prose. An Vandevorst and Filip Arickx had come up with a story, about a female pilot flying around the world who parachutes into terra incognita and begins exploring. Which is to say, Vandevorst and Arickx were riffing on parachutes and flight suits, a theme sledgehammered home by the rather extraordinary opening gown of what looked like parachute silk, with a train nearly the length of the runway. That was poetry; so too, the dresses and jackets of cotton/aluminum, which were sculpted to look fiercely windblown. Not particularly realistic for everyday wear, those clothes, but they had genuine expressive force. And anyway, there was plenty of prosaic stuff here, like the attractive silk separates in a feather print, or jumpsuits and jackets with interior backpack straps, an idea that's time has surely come. Some of the jumpsuits hit the flight theme too hard, but in general, the "prose" looks here had a pleasing matter-of-factness. A tailored vest in the feather print, paired with matching flared pants, was one look here that popped; the dresses with specially distressed pleats likewise transcended the mundane, without entering into the region of total fancy. Which is to say, this was a better outing than we've seen from this brand in a while. Much like their imaginary pilot, this season Vandevorst and Arickx were—depending how you see it—either forging their way forward or finding their way back.
 
Vivienne Rohner

Jane Grybennikova

Deimante Misiunaite

?

Kristy Kaurova

Kristina Kulyk

Monika Jablonczky

Anastasia Ivanova

?

Brogan Loftus

Alla Kostromicheva

Shao Qing

Irina Nikolaeva

?

Lenka Varvarova
 
Talisa Quirk

Nika Cole

Sherry Q

Maggie Jablonski

Jane Grybennikova #2

Deimante Misiunaite #2

? #2

Kristy Kaurova #2

Monika Jablonczky #2

Lenka Varvarova #2

Anasatasia Ivanova #2

Brogan Loftus #2

Alla Kostromicheva #2
 
Shao Quing #2

Irina Nikolaeva #2

?

Talisa Quirk #2

Sherryy Q #2

Maggie Jablonski #2


So much love for this!
 
Review

If you didn't know that the Maison Rabih Kayrouz show opened to "Gangsta's Paradise," you might have a different perception of the first look. But now that you do (and where is Coolio these days?), you can better appreciate how Kayrouz crossed codes of high and low to arrive at his dynamic Spring collection. The designer based his narrative on a privileged girl who dreams of grittier horizons—let's call it aspirational in reverse. That's why the roses, on a print developed in-house, registered more brash than beautiful—and why they were caged in black grosgrain and surrounded by ivory. Kayrouz's high-shine satin was intentionally "tacky," he said backstage, going so far as to admit this was a "dangerous" choice.

Most of the time, however, he treaded carefully. By ensuring that his papery, lacquered leather seemed opulent, Kayrouz gave himself permission to introduce a dotted viscose skirt in a questionable shade of ultraviolet. That same knit appeared in ivory, haphazardly wrapped around a well-finished collarless white shirt. The designer also recoded pinstripe into a boxer robe and had Walter Steiger conceive practical sandals, primped up with a flat bow. Sheer, diaphanous caftans had allure but belonged to another collection.

Kayrouz showed his distinctive knack for manipulating fabric. To wit, the overskirt that fronted a pair of pinstriped pants consisted of two pieces of the same material from the legs that had been pulled through and draped over the waistband. When a sleeveless lace sweatshirt was slipped under a one-shoulder polka-dot tunic, the result was a clash of cool.

Toward the end of the lineup there was a rose jacquard twinset paired with cuffed leather trousers. It then reappeared as the last look of the final walk, and Kayrouz showed how something so classic could be interpreted with edge. The duality of a twinset made for a neat parting thought.