February 18, 2018 |
Hussein Chalayan named this collection, “Peripherique.” Whatever Hussein Chalayan was thinking about (borders, edges, society, that French ring road etc) it had propelled him to create a much more wearable rather than a conceptual collection this season. This was intended to be an ironic take on the bourgeois French lady, you know the drill, she saunters around in her simple tailored fabulousness, fur wrap swung over the shoulder. She smokes a cigarette. She has inherited money. Magnifique. Except in the end it wasn’t that ironic because it actually felt quite chic and beautiful. The chubby cherry red furs felt so sumptuous, quilted jackets cocooned the women in some kind of discreet disguise and leather boots grounded it all. There was a dark drama in the black lean hooded caped dress, draping, a flowing inkiness felt so easy yet complex. An intellectual languidness to it all. Yes, we could definitely see ourselves wearing this. The mad inventor ‘Chalayan’ crept into the collection in the form of clear plastic moulded onto models’ faces… Not so wearable but we’ll roll with it. And after all the darkness came gleaming silvery animal prints, a lot of shine and silk chiffon draped over printed dresses. The collection had a nice sense of loose tailoring, a graceful manner to it all and an air of quiet confidence. Politesse. Bien joué.
Photographs by Jason Lloyd Evans
