Sunday, June 19, 2011

BEAUTY: Clothing--Vivienne Westwood

This week we embarked upon Milano Moda Uomo and all the major players are showing in Milan, including some of my favorite designers whose work is more like sculpture or conceptual art.

And one of my favorite artists of all time is the phenomenal Dame Vivienne Westwood. Regular readers will know that I do not disguise my enchantment with Dame Westwood and her work.

So for Spring '12, she is showing marvelous examples of what she does best. Since the Olympics are in London next year, she started her runway show with a nod to the games by including visual references to Greek culture (running athletes from a Greek vase and laurel leaves) and gold medals. But we quickly move into more familiar territory: suits. As always, she plays with cut, fit, and scale in all aspects of the suits. We see a great variety here: cut-away jackets with small lapels and a high stance, jackets with a more traditional cut, and wonderful nipped-at-the-waist jackets with rounded lapels and a very low stance. And she slips in an all-denim outfit with a beautiful gray blazer. I love them all.

What is missing however, are her kilts and her historical references. I liked seeing a cut, a pattern, or an entire piece of clothing that evoked the 1700s or 1800s, although we are getting a bit of an historical flavor with those rounded lapels. But no matter, what she has done here is still wonderful.

And as always, she has some amazing shoes to go with the clothing. I really love the slipper with three straps and buckles as well as the striped lace-ups.

P.S. I am aware that the Vivienne Westwood MAN label is now designed by her husband, Andreas Kronthaler (seen in the last photo holding her hand on the runway). Of course he is designing according to established standards of the House of Westwood and all products need to be given her blessing...

http://www.viviennewestwood.co.uk/

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