February 23, 2017 |
There’s something about this, Diesel Black Gold’s AW17 collection, that I can’t quite put my finger on. I want to call it earthy. And not just because those initial looks came forth in earthy, muted tones, but there was something homespun too about that silhouette. It was covered up, long, lean. Floor-length knit dresses, ribbed for your pleasure, equally long cardigans over trousers with trailing scarfs that covered the neck, amazing shearling jackets. Is it wrong that I’m getting something of the lady farmer from this? Probably. Because Andreas Melbostad was actually inspired by New York, more particularly Brooklyn and Manhattan (or so we overheard someone saying). So maybe that sense of earthiness was emblematic of the Brooklynite, the tougher, more urban cityscape of Manhattan coming through in the licks of leather, those mannish fabrics (pinstriped wool, corduroy, denim) and that leaner, more utilitarian silhouette. Case in point: those leather corsets, a sort of biker jacket sans sleeve and upper half. Which maybe are better referred to as a boob tube, because does a corset not suggest limited movement? And there no such limits here. With Andreas there never are. His DBG girls are tough – they have places to go, shit to do. And they need clothes to do that in. All the way down to the trainers on their feet.
