The California-based contemporary artist Sterling Ruby presented his new fashion label S.R.Studio.LA.CA. in Florence this evening. The clothes, a mix of womenswear and men’s, further explored the artist’s multi-disciplinary remit, one which includes ceramics, collage, painting and video; sculpture and photography too. The runway pieces – a wardrobe of workwear shapes, jackets and wider jeans; some exceptional knitwear riffed on the artist’s much-lauded art. “I’ve always been interested in the behavioural power that comes with clothing,” he told press about the collection.
But this isn’t Ruby’s first fashion runway outing, having collaborated with Raf Simons (who attended the show) during his tenures at both Dior and Calvin Klein, even redesigning the American megabrand’s New York flagship. Tonight, though, was solely devoted to Sterling’s vision for a new clothing line, the aesthetics of which, stand in contrast to the surfeit of streetwear and hiking-gear seen on even the most unlikely stalls, here at Pitti. The 47-year-old German-born designer sent out a series of acid-wash oversized denim pieces worn with stompy boots and bleach-splash cotton jackets and jeans and some exceptional knitwear. This, specifically, nodded to, but then moved on, his former work with Simons. The cool “dirty fluoro” colours throughout, will speak to high-fashion fans and the extreme shapes to those high-spending Gen-Z’ers, now aware of Ruby thanks to his work with Simons. The collection will launch globally, this June exclusively with Ssense. Get these shoppers investing and you’ve made it.
