Dearest Third Cousin,
For Motley this month, I took a look at some themes I see in the brand of fashion week and some of my favorite designers that inhabit these weeks.
‘Fashion week’ is a special time of year; not least because
it’s a month long, happens twice a year, and spans two continents. At the time
of writing the Autumn/Winter 2013 ready to wear collections had just begun,
Wednesday the 6th of February in New York to be exact and I imagine
London will be in full swing by the time you read this, with Milan and Paris to
follow. Now you may ask why is Fashion Week so special, besides the aforementioned
discrepancies in the whole concept. Well the fashion world loves a good brand
and frankly fashion week is a brand, a great, seductive, confusing, beautiful
brand. So what makes this brand so successful that we ignore the countless
other fashion weeks around the world and flock to, or aspire to flock to the
Big Four. Well it’s all about the brand and the brand of the designer of your
choice, who depending on where they choose to show will have an identity that
conforms to some sort of theme that we associate with city they are showing in.
New York is cool, London experimental, Paris chic and Milan luxurious.
So what
are, in my opinion the four brands that help to create and arguably adhere to
this branding?
Alexander Wang:
New York was made for Wang’s effortless, boy meets girl look. He has built a brand
that reportedly makes 60 million a year and essentially created the ‘model
off-duty’ aesthetic, which is so integral to his brand identity. Eirn Wasson,
partner in crime and his stylist muse (she styled all his shows until
relatively recently) is the embodiment of the model-off-duty look. She being
one of the top models working today, if you have some time check out some
videos of the pair together there is a notable one on style.com, in which, they
get a bit drunk and take you on a tour of the New York party scene to celebrate
the duo’s collaboration on Wang’s second ever show in 2008. Now with Wang taking
over from Nicolas Ghesquiere at the helm of Balenciaga in Paris, all eyes are
on the 26 year old and I can’t wait to see what he does with such an established
brand.
Simone Rocha: One
of my favourite emerging designers. London really is a great home for her
brand. She is experimental and tends to push the limits of taste just like the
brand of LFW itself. She describes her aesthetic as ‘modern and strong yet
romantic’, she has a great eye for fabric and texture and Simone’s brand
includes stunning Perspex heeled brogues and simple shapes made interesting by
exciting materials and texture. She was a recipient of the coveted NEWGEN
sponsorship for Autumn/Winter 2013, other recipients Alexander Mc Queen, Mary
Katrantzou and Erdem Moralioğlu. Keep an eye on her and her brand, she is
one to watch.
Prada: While Paris has many great houses Milan fashion week, in my
mind, is about the brand of the fashion house. Mrs.Prada’s brand is genius. The
Prada brand is covetable, crafted and creative. She makes clothes for women who
love luxury but still want a product that will push people’s perceptions of
style. Like Milan fashion week, there is nothing bashful about a Prada design,
it’s bold and confident but always, always simply great. Her designs are made
from the best material by arguably the best womens-wear designer. A Prada
collection often takes inspiration from art, culture or even something abstract
like ‘beauty’ in the face of war’. This mix of the best materials and the
design direction of Miuccia Prada creates a monster global brand that perfectly
and comfortably complements the brand identity of Milan Fashion week.
Ann
Demeulemeester: A member of the famed ‘Antwrep Six’ along with Dries Van
Noten and the seventh member, Martin Maison Margiela. She is designer who like
Paris has an identity and vision and sticks to it. Trends or celebrities do not
bother her. Demeulemeester’s brand will not be seen on a red carpet or copied
ad infinitum by the High street. She makes clothes that she wants to wear, in
fact she only wears clothes she makes herself admitting in an interview, that
she does own one pair of Levi jeans, but she only deigns to wear them while
gardening. Her clothing is almost exclusively black and white and always
distinctively conscribing to her brand. Paris fashion week and Demeulemeester’s brand
go hand in hand, both offering the consumer piece of mind, with both, you know
what you’re going to get.
Love,
Sarah
