Quite often in the history of fashion vibrant bursts of color, bedazzling embellishments and intricately ornate patterns emerged as poignant reactions to moments of chaos, crisis and turmoil in society.
One notable instance is Schiaparelli's introduction of her Commedia dell'Arte collection (S/S 1939) amidst the looming specter of war in Europe during October 1938. This collection, featuring a Harlequin coat, tricorns, lace masks, and other whimsical elements, seemed to serve as a cathartic expression, exorcising the prevailing fear and anxiety surrounding the impending conflict. Besides, the main theme of the collection became a powerful metaphor indicating the psychological state of mind people were living in.
Fast forward to our complex times and you will find that, even designers renowned for their steadfast devotion to monochrome palettes, every now and then find themselves drawn to kaleidoscopic patterns and shades.
Kei Ninomiya, whose label is an ode to the color black, ventured down the kaleidoscope path in his A/W 24 collection, for example.
While previous collections had hinted at deviations from his black-dominated aesthetic with sporadic splashes of red, green or neutrals, this latest showcase marked a significant departure. The designs unveiled during Paris Fashion Week were indeed a veritable explosion of colors.
The opening ensemble looked almost like a cloud of PLA filaments drawn in the air with a 3D pen, or a mass of colorful wires extending from the model's body like a tangible aura.
In other creations that followed, these colorful wires assumed a floral configuration on bulbously frothy tulle designs.
Then a macramé bodice was covered in white feathers and matched with a skirt covered in rainbow feathers that looked like delicious sugar crystals cocktail sticks (View this photo).
Amidst this riot of colors, black reappeared as a structural element, forming a framework for coats and jackets from which bursts of synthetic pastel hair erupted, invoking Ninomiya's punkish sensibilities.
The return of black briefly brought back on the runway Ninomiya's passion for punk moods: first it was juxtaposed to pink for designs with some Gothic Lolita accents; then it was used in plaid separates accessorized with harnesses, multiple bows and multiple ties, at times matched with a white shirt with extended collars, reminiscent of a Vivienne Westwood design donned by Siouxie Sioux in Siouxie And The Banshees' video "Happy House".
Military-inspired garments, rendered in satin olive with accents of emergency orange, underwent a transformative metamorphosis through chunky hand-knit overlays made with satin tubing, harnesses with Charms square candies-like elements and multicolored trellis-like structures, shedding their military associations for a more playful aesthetic.
Transparent designs that also covered the head of the model in a style reminiscent of Sheila Legge's surreal phantom persona at the 1936 International Surrealist Exhibition in London (a reference that had already appeared in a previous Noir Kei Ninomiya collection), introduced the final part of the show that also included designs with reinvented granny squares fashioned from colorful plasticky materials that formed wearable stained glass windows on the models' bodies.
The culmination of the runway showcased iridescent (well, the title of this collection is actually "Iridescence"...) and colorful designs, including a capelet and dress adorned with blooming flowers evoking the suit of the Burry Man (a Scottish folk figure intended to bring good luck and fertility to the community).
These vibrant hues evoked the iridescence of sea creatures and the vivid palette of Pipilotti Rist's "Metal Flake Milk Tooth" series (2023), that features sculptures covered in metallic flakes, sprayed with vibrant candy hues, and finished with a clear lacquer producing visually striking effects that mesmerize the senses with their optically dynamic surfaces and interplay of light (View this photo).
One of the models wearing these designs sported a broken mug with a motif of a crown on her head, symbolizing a sort of unexpected beauty found in imperfection (but other models in the show also sported on their heads bits of broken mugs and plates).
For what regards the accessories, models strutted down the runway in reinvented Reebok Instapump Fury sneakers (Anrealage also did a collaboration with the brand, as seen in a previous post) adorned, like the bags included in this collection, with large daisy flowers, showcasing a fusion of fashion and fun.
On his Instagram page, the designer stated about his creative vision for this collection: "This season, I chose to focus on creating something new using different colors and textures, and playing with the reflection of light."
While fashion cannot single-handedly resolve the conflicts and chaos of our world, it possesses the transformative power to offer solace and inspiration, in this case through inventive constructions (Ninomiya is still continuing his research into new stitchless techniques).
Simple yet mesmerizing details, such as the arrangement of safety pins joined with a small metal ring to create a three-dimensional structure along the shoulders of a dress, or strips of leather articulated in a modular trellis-like structure (an idea Ninomiya has been experimenting with for a while), serve as poignant reminders of the beauty of invention and the enduring allure of the unexpected.
In a world fraught with uncertainty, perhaps therein lies the secret to survival - a dash of color, a spirit of reinvention, and the beauty of basic materials elevated to whimsical marvels that bring forth a smile.
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