What can be said of these 2 collections other than one is positively and patently
ridiculously minimal made with maximum labor and the other is a designer who
designs and celebrates fashion in every way. It never occurred to me that there
is such a thing as monastic and funereal frocks that are pale in color and yet
here we have oodles of them here.
 |
| click image to enlarge |
 |
| click image to enlarge |
Valentino is
a yawn inducing exercise in how to make deceptively simple boring clothes with maximum
pricing for little to no reason other than ego. A friend referred to them as burial sheaths
and that sure seems to be as accurate and apt as it can get. I see these
clothes as heavily influenced by peignoirs, nuns, vestal virgins and night
clothes and not in a sexy way. They are if anything erotically void and bland in
the extreme, maybe you can just call them benign. Couture is about grand
gestures and emotionally provocative clothes but it is rarely if ever boring;
it may be “been there done” that or "it's been done before” or even just plain hideous
BUT it is rarely if ever BORING! Apparently this designer has opted to stay his
course and allow for the easiest comparison to his former partner who sticks to
the same mindset and neither move on yielding 2 brands with less than thrilling
collections. Take note of the slip dresses with straps too long as if to show
off a sagging bust line and that silly tubular quilted bust line. Of course we can
speak of the preponderance of duster coats and the complete absence of day wear
but why bother... onto the next season of ennui and monotony chez Valentino. Sadly
Valentino has lost the excitement and panache it once possessed.
 |
| click image to enlarge |
 |
| click image to enlarge |
 |
| click image to enlarge |
Moving right
along we arrive at destination Gaultier, home of the ribald color explosion and
over the top presentation that has become a benchmark for the designer. He is a
designer who designs, who massages and utilizes his DNA and produces clothes
that are to be worn, coveted and collected by the cognoscenti of fashion. Yes,
you must look past all the brouhaha and antics of each show but if you can see
past that, you find amazingly beautiful well designed feminine clothes.
 |
| click image to enlarge |
 |
| click image to enlarge |
He is a
celebration of fashion and of the haute couture with his flamboyant color
palette and the OTT styling but what a joy to watch. I was told many decades
ago, that one must always remember that Gaultier is a tailor at heart and he
reaffirms that with fabulous jackets of every possible incarnation. Season after
season the Gaultier vocabulary is defty spoken and season after season it remains
strong and ever expanding, you might say JPG is expansive yet focused on all
that he created and has yet to create. In essence it is distinctly and
consistently what haute couture is all about ... taking fashion to the extreme
especially in manufacture and embellishment … JPG is a celebration and homage
to haute couture in every way.
 |
| click image to enlarge |
 |
| click image to enlarge |
 |
| click image to enlarge |
No comments:
Post a Comment