The collab train is going full speed and there’s no sign of stopping. Latest one to be revealed is A.G.E. (Advanced Garment Exploration) of Shayne Oliver for COLMAR. The creative brain behind Hood by Air and an ex-resident designer at Helmut Lang has now taken on board a whole new task – reimagining the skiwear universe of the Italian heritage activewear brand. Delving into the brand’s 90-year-long archive and injecting slivers of his underground surrealism into the world of sportswear, Shayne is doing a damn good job of making us want to head to the Alps.
Reinventing classic mountain jackets and ski trousers as multipurpose fashion pieces, the American designer is bringing a level of eccentricity that hasn’t yet been seen coming down the slopes. The jacket-attached-to-a-jacket-that’s-also-a-backpack can be worn however you want. A side hood? Hanging off the back? Transformed into a snow-proof dress? All of the above. The oversized silhouettes Shayne has established as ready-to-wear through his work for both Helmut Lang and with Hood By Air are now hitting peak functionality. You avbsolutely want to wear all of those layers in the mountains because they will keep you seriously warm.
But how does the meeting of such opposites realise into one collection? “Our encounter is an experiment in mood and energy which drives the outerwear collection a maximum, juggling the iconic products of Colmar with my sense of performance and a unisex approach to wearing fashion,” the Hood By Air designer says in the press release. The past, present and future – it’s all rolled into fabulous clothes that are giving polar temperatures a whole new look. A unisex, conceptual, yet wearable one. Get us up there!
The A.G.E. of Shayne Oliver for Colmar collection is launching mid-September at Dover Street Market NYC, Browns Fashion and other global premium retailers.
Video by Sharna Osbourne, photographs by Jordan Hemingway.
