The history of fashion has seen quite a few designers creating interior design pieces or collaborating on a regular basis with companies manufacturing textiles for interior purposes.
Yet there have also been fashion houses that tried to create correspondences on the runway between a collection and interior design, maybe by using furniture as background decoration for a show or taking inspiration from the colour combination, shapes and silhouettes of specific designs for their clothes (think also about the Memphis Milano theme that has turned into an unhealthy obsession in the last few years...).
Dries Van Noten was the latest to move from interior design for his S/S 19 menswear collection. In his case the starting point was Verner Panton (1926-1998) and in particular the patterns for his fabrics and textiles, even though some of the moods seemed to be directly linked to the Visiona (0 and 2) events curated by Panton between the end of the '60s and the early '70s.
Sponsored by chemistry company Bayer AG and developed on the boat "Loreley" (anchored on the Rhine) for the Cologne Furniture Fair in 1968 and 1970, these temporary installations were supposed to promote the technical possibilities and practical use of the comapny's new synthetic fibres like Dralon through a home textiles collection.
Yet for these occasions Panton ended up creating immersive environments in bright and bold psychedelically exuberant colours in which architecture and furniture were combined together.
The results were avant-garde fantasy cave-like spaces characterised by fluidly liquid architectures that broke with design traditions and that also integrated in their organic shapes Panton's own designs, including lamps and chairs. Panton didn't use colours in a casual or random way for these installations, but he based his choices on human psychology.
Soon these showcases for home textiles became iconic events that introduced visitors to a new interior design vision that broke with conventions, hinting at the possibilities offered by the future.
The opening looks on Dries Van Noten's runway seemed to borrow the colour palette from the intergalactic and hallucinated "Phantasy Landscape" in "Visiona 2".
Yet the waving motifs and thick swirls on the opening swimming trunks, shorts and jackets were actually borrowed from Panton's textiles called "Mira-X-Collection Decor I" (1969-71) that featured designs in 8 pure colours - orange, bright red, dark red, aubergine, mauve, violet, blue and turquoise - and in eight shades of brightness - from 100% to 15% colour saturation.
The Panton inspiration first appeared on Van Noten's runway in the colours, patterns and textiles chosen for the collection, and including rich reds, Campari spritz oranges, electric blues, soft browns, luscious greens and vivid yellows, waving patterns and a graphic print of a hand.
Panton's prints, authorised by his estate, were digitalised, adjusted, rescaled and adapted to the various garments.
The light cellophane-like raincoats evoked Bayer's Dralon, but there were also a series of less synthetic and more natural options such as cotton suits, overalls borrowed from workwear for that utilitarian twist added, and practical separates with shirts made in a thick velvet fabric that evoked the consistency of interior design textiles.
Silhouettes were wearable, elegant and functional, a natural choice that went well with the more complicated and colourful patterns.
The accessory offer was strong with bag and shoes also characterised by Panton's patterns and colours. Van Noten seemed to give up his more romantic moods, his trademark floral elements, signature botanical prints and delicate embroideries in favour of a retro futurism that inspired a much needed optimism.
The final idea was indeed giving a new energy and vibe to people's life: Panton believed indeed that living was about relaxing and feeling happy in environments that could be considered as radically different and alternative versions of the more conventionally and formally furnished living rooms.
This was the first show since Spanish fragrance and fashion firm Puig acquired a majority share in Dries Van Noten. Time will tell if this was the right option or if the company will lose its identity with Puig pushing for more boutiques and maybe one or two commercial fragrances, but this was undoubtedly a good way for the Belgian designer to start a new chapter in his career.
Comments