February 14, 2022 |
With a focused fascination on the lavish Deco glamour of Josephine Baker and Zizi Jeanmarie, this season, Area’s Piotr Panszczyk mixed in all the glitz and glam of a Vegas dancer and the zhush of Brazilian and Caribbean Carnivals to compose a sparkling selection of sexed-up clubwear. With each sculpturally asymmetric hip bump and bust, Panszczyk begged the question: if Jean Arps bathed in glitter, what would we get? The answer: Area.
Exploding with colour, bulbous structures like modernist sculptures come covered in obsessive beading and excessive embroidery. Meanwhile, the audacity on display brought just the right amount of drama. Think elegant masquerade masks and mouthpieces, gold metalwork wings on everything, embellished brasiers and elaborate body harnesses, all paired with crystal platform mules and feathered stilettos for a brilliant, bourgeois look.
Across both a ready-to-wear and couture collection, Area mixes burlesque undertones with Y2K-inspired butterfly and heart motifs. When it came to the couture elements of the collection, graphic embroidered impressions were reminiscent of Erte’s illustrations and like a soft armour, garments made use of Area’s signature padded crystal and bead technique. But what’s really special, an intricately embroidered black Duchesse forming a multi-feathered gown took 84 distinct material hues, 18 artisans across New York, Italy and India, and 4150 hours (18 days) to complete – pretty impressive stuff.
Whether it’s corset-shaped blazers and bodysuits, flared pants with bedazzled body jewellery, barely-there butterfly lingerie, fur-trimmed booty-revealing hot pants and a denim jacket for the off-duty dancer, or logo laden thongs, Area is about the lux life and it couldn’t be clearer: This is a collection for the girls that just want to have fun. These clothes crave a dance and are meant to be worn out–out, whether it’s evenings spent at the nightclub or a masquerade ball.
Photography courtesy of Area.
