Rick Owens’s presentations have become somewhat predictable. The same industrial space, techno music and androgynous gaunt models wearing long dresses.
Owens’s steadfast and confident approach to menswear is admirable. By fusing military, sports and tailoring influences Owens has defined the hard-core fashion warriors for years. The designer’s dark post apocalyptic vision and signature colour palette has been a secure wardrobe for many dark devotees and his technical expertise is admirable.
However the new summer collection opened up Owens’s repertoire and offered a more youthful approach. While there were still plenty of black skirt and short hybrids, Owens introduced sheer jackets in nylon and soft linen and this new lightness resonated through the industrial cave like a breath of fresh air. Graphic prints in a chevron effect, slim paneled skirts and fitted sleeveless T-shirts were stripped down and worn with clogs and wool socks.
A patchwork linear pattern on parka jackets also bought a new sense of experimentation and buoyancy to Owens’s vocabulary. Sharper and less saturated in density than previous collections the new offering cut a new sensitive approach.
Owens’s clarity of message is clear and the functionality is core to Owens’s clothes. The designer’s innate ability to morph his signature slightly each season is admirable and, will ensure Owens’s warrior clad fans will continually come back for more.
