Mordecai’s SS26 show wasn’t walked. It was fought, held, clutched, gripped. Staged in the stripped-back setting of an old school gym, creative director Ludovico Bruno cast martial artists instead of models. Judo, karate and Greco-Roman fighters moved through the space with intensity and control, more like sparring partners than fashion models. The effect was powerful: a reminder that connection – whether through combat or care – is always physical.
That idea of touch carried through into the clothes. Fabrics were sturdy and practical – waxed cotton, light ripstop, yarn-dyed stripes – but carefully chosen to reflect tension and closeness. Stripes echoed classic men’s shirts but were used in distorted, optical ways, referencing the work of Louise Bourgeois. Alessandro Mannelli’s prints added to the mood: two heads pressed together, unsure if they were bracing for a fight or a kiss.
Silhouettes were looser than past seasons, but not oversized, with anatomical gilets that nodded to muscles and armour. Every piece felt like a second skin in motion, all in a palette that was earthy and subdued – off-white, sludge green, judo blue, burnt curry.
This wasn’t a collection just about sport or even style, and Bruno did a lot more than dress fighters; he gave them something they’ll want to fight in. These were clothes built for the mat and more: grappling with utility, throwing punches with texture and landing soft where it mattered. If this was a uniform, it was for emotional combat – armour that embraces back.
Photography courtesy of Mordecai.
