Flames sprouted out of the steel frames arranged in a triangular formation to look like a tippi striped bare as an imaginary rendition of the Russian constructivist artist Vladimir Tatlin’s project for the Monument to the Third International (1919-1920) that was never constructed in the middle of the Rick Owens show in the vast courtyard of the Palais de Tokyo. It was the first time I have seen fire on the fashion runway since the rings of fire at an Alexander McQueen Joan of Arc show in London in February 1998. But the ring of fire then was tame compare to the heat of fire felt by the audience that tore this Tatlin’s Tower.
Owens’ stage construction is always central to his fashion vocabulary filtered into every product under his brand name whether they are men and women apparel, footwear or his large range of furniture designs. That message has always been the courage to follow his own design instincts and visions no matter how unusual the result is for others. Where else in fashion would there be a model carrying a torch light wearing a blood sharp laser cut and parallelogram shaped blood cloak coat and a black plastic diamond shape paneled dress? Sometime the question to ask is whether the audience should adjust their vision when confronted with clothes that are not conventional.
Whatever the symbolism of this display of live art namely a physical destruction of everything by fire is open to one’s own interpretation – the destruction of institutions currently taking place in the U.S. or the designer’s own struggle to remain an independent voice and business in the fashion system prone to corporate dictates. The couture coats with complicated origami folding and intricately cut-out dresses resembled walking sculptures than a simple coat to wear out day or night time demonstrated the sophisticated construction and cutting techniques in spite of their weird appearances. The torn and twisted denim hot pants worn with a black bra and a large cargo waist belt can be seen as a remnant of this idea of destruction carry over into the clothes and these are pieces that translated to products at the stores.
Several ‘calmer’ looks under the included the long sheath made from old American flag and a black or light yellow short fringe dresses or a grey hooded bolero sweatshirt – a sort of break in the fire’s path but these dresses and are shaped with slight folds – also in a light blue fringe sleeveless short dress that are demonstrably Owens’ design trademark that extended into all those new Birkenstock footwear.
Photos courtesy of Owenscorp
Flames sprouted out of the steel frames arranged in a triangular formation to look like a tippi striped bare as an imaginary rendition of the Russian constructivist artist Vladimir Tatlin’s project for the Monument to the Third International (1919-1920) that was never constructed in the middle of the Rick Owens show in the vast courtyard of the Palais de Tokyo. It was the first time I have seen fire on the fashion runway since the rings of fire at an Alexander McQueen Joan of Arc show in London in February 1998. But the ring of fire then was tame compare to the heat of fire felt by the audience that tore this Tatlin’s Tower.
Owens’ stage construction is always central to his fashion vocabulary filtered into every product under his brand name whether they are men and women apparel, footwear or his large range of furniture designs. That message has always been the courage to follow his own design instincts and visions no matter how unusual the result is for others. Where else in fashion would there be a model carrying a torch light wearing a blood sharp laser cut and parallelogram shaped blood cloak coat and a black plastic diamond shape paneled dress? Sometime the question to ask is whether the audience should adjust their vision when confronted with clothes that are not conventional.
Whatever the symbolism of this display of live art namely a physical destruction of everything by fire is open to one’s own interpretation – the destruction of institutions currently taking place in the U.S. or the designer’s own struggle to remain an independent voice and business in the fashion system prone to corporate dictates. The couture coats with complicated origami folding and intricately cut-out dresses resembled walking sculptures than a simple coat to wear out day or night time demonstrated the sophisticated construction and cutting techniques in spite of their weird appearances. The torn and twisted denim hot pants worn with a black bra and a large cargo waist belt can be seen as a remnant of this idea of destruction carry over into the clothes and these are pieces that translated to products at the stores.
Several ‘calmer’ looks under the included the long sheath made from old American flag and a black or light yellow short fringe dresses or a grey hooded bolero sweatshirt – a sort of break in the fire’s path but these dresses and are shaped with slight folds – also in a light blue fringe sleeveless short dress that are demonstrably Owens’ design trademark that extended into all those new Birkenstock footwear.
Photos courtesy of Owenscorp
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