On Aura Tout Vu haute couture Spring 2022

I prefer to think of On Aura Tout Vu as the truest example of Haute Couture. By this I mean that Yassen Samouilov and Livia Stoianova are the mad scientists in their laboratory of fashion. “We wanted to speak about superhero’s living inside of everyone during this difficult period.”

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Unquestionably they have addressed superheroes but my eyes see much more than just costumes. What I see is astounding craftsmanship, unimaginable tailoring and experimentation in the world of fashion where few others utilize or exhibit when assembling their collections especially at a time when so much seems to depend on how much fabric you use or how oversized and bloated everything might be. (Long thought there!)

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This design duo stretches the viewer’s collective imagination as well as the abilities of their ateliers to offer an almost alternate universe of fashion. It is strange that within their collection I see glimmers of Thierry Mugler, JPG, Stèphan Rolland and more... by this I mean not copies but references in the truest sense of the word.

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Spliced between their worlds of fantasy and reality there are statement making dresses for those who have no problem being the center of attention. As one might assume, the brand is also responsible for a never-ending roster of costumes for theater and dance as well as clothes for their almost cult like following. I cannot emphasize enough that I am not advocating On Aura Tout Vu as being fashion of the moment as much as I am clearly stating that the brand is one of the few that does more than just show clothes and offer some high-handed philosophies for their raison d’etre and rationale for their collection!

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THE STATE OF COUTURE Spring 2022

haute cou·ture : expensive, fashionable clothes produced by leading fashion houses by The Oxford Dictionary!

One of the key words in this definition is EXPENSIVE! So, my question to all these designers who think couture should be a more democratic pursuit would be... have the prices been lowered to appeal to a larger and more varied audience?

It is a known fact to most that couture is made to measure so one can be reasonably sure that the clothes will be made in everything from a size 2 to size 22 with all the modifications requested by the client and suggested by the designer.

Nowhere does it say that since fashion has become a spectator sport that it must also celebrate every size and shape and age on the runway. The runway was the one place that made customers aspire, dream and lust for what they see. So, I ask you how many women aspire to have jiggling thighs seen under transparent  gowns and their midriffs bulging out of side cutouts or muffin tops on a gown or looking larger than they are? Where is the fantasy in that? Couture was never a democratic pursuit and will never be until it no longer exists!

Designers’ words cannot make it so and larger models cannot make it so ... it is what it is and it isn’t meant for everyone in style or size but it is only for the very very rich of any size who can afford the “cost of admission!”

For the greater part of its existence couture was the harbinger of what was to come in the ready to wear versions from that brand or in other words it was the laboratory for fashion created by the “mad scientists” who suddenly had no restrictions in respect to cost. Now we have clothes and rhetoric ... few day clothes and tonnage of evening looks for a pandemic era. Where is the fantasy other than imagining where you might wear any of this? Afford it? Or want it?

Reviewers no longer offer their opinions since most are too unknowledgeable to have one but they have become bull horns for the designers who hope to explain away the reason for his or her oeuvre or regurgitations of their press releases ... no matter how esoteric. My point being they are no longer reviews they are merely interviews with designers where the bulk of said “review” is in the designer’s words and not in those of the reviewer.

Who can answer these questions for me who agrees with MY OPINION about the state of couture?

Fendi couture spring 2022

I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say the biggest issue for Kim Jones now is that he is starting to build the DNA of Fendi as a clothing brand and since it has not been solidified yet and so my judgment will be more restrained than I might normally offer for a collection like this.

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First what struck me early on is that the clothes re most certainly a bit or maybe a lot of molto Signora.” Moving on, it passed through my mind that if it wasn’t overtly matronly, that this is what Valentino might look like if executed with the brands original Valentino DNA. Then I wondered how much input he had from the Fendi sisters and how much weight those opinions carried as there is a dichotomy in this collection between the old and the new. So how many cooks were in the kitchen so to speak.

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I think the “sculptural” print of art prints were meant to echo the famous Sheila Metzner photos for the Fendi scent, but it wasn’t fully expanded upon and then got lost with undecipherable prints. I think it was a mistake to offer such a dark collection since it was a bit difficult to see and also it is spring. The choice of fabrications was sort of odd as they didn’t all drape fluidly and in some cases as in the tulle or dark chiffon, they looked skimpy and others heavy handed.

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I did like the caftans and some of the more trend driven pieces as well and even some of the more mother of the bride pieces, but I think he will eventually have to take a stand and figure out who is the Fendi woman.

Gaultier couture spring 2022

You say potato I say potahto... let’s call the whole thing off! Sound familiar?? Another familiar aphorism ... beauty is in the eye of the beholder and well this beholder was not all that impressed or convinced of the words used by Glenn Martens, the guest designer (Y Project) and the author of the review on the Vogue site.

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Where he saw the original DNA of the brand ... I saw references to Iris van Herpen, the Japanese, dare I say Valentino and Margiela among others and oh yes there was the hip fixation but in couture it was tongue in cheek and in rtw it was dead serious. Let me be the first one to point out that when JPG did couture it was wildly chic, urbane and wildly creative and totally him. So here, the jumping off point is not as true to couture as Martens decided to use the codes of RTW as opposed to the codes of the Haute Couture. He might have taken note that the “tattoo” fabric was not meant to drape but to be second skin hence the name!

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It bothers me tremendously that now designers basically write their own reviews and the supposed critics have become secretaries or just plain regurgitators of the designer’s words ... simply said ... the writers/reviewers bring nothing to the table except a keyboard and the designers all want to make themselves out to be the greatest thing since thread who have assembled genius groundbreaking collections that are supposed to be seen as such! Guess what ... it aint, they aint and they will never be brilliant except in their own minds and on the pages written by the fawners and wannabes who pretend to know what they are talking about. The problem being most are not well versed enough to be critics and so it’s far easier to let the designers do the” talking!”

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I would suggest the Mr. Martens try to calculate likes/clicks to the amount of couture the brand will sell and to the audience who is clicking and liking said collection!

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Lastly, I’d like to point out to designers, readers and reviewers that couture was never meant to be a democratic pursuit ... it is supported by maybe 1% of the world’s population who can afford to buy 4, 5 and 6 figure garments made to measure, so all this bull about appealing to a larger audience is exactly that .. bull! Oh, and rarely do these brands ever break out the numbers of just how much they do sell.

Valentino couture spring 2022

So, what’s the message here? I saw odes to YSL, Courreges, Halston, Mona Bismarck and her Balenciaga opera coat and yet not one reference from the eponymous designer of this brand!

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There surely was a lot fabric used in the making of this collection which ranged from almost 2-dimensional flatness to voluminous shapes that swallowed the model. The color range was a highlight, yet it was more like a pantone color book than a well thought out palette... yes refreshing but at these prices you want something more than just colorful “stuff.”

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In his efforts to be inclusive, which he certainly was, he went overboard by showing some of these confections on more than reed slim models and that really didn’t work so well... cellulite is not something makes women dream! All in all, to me it told no story, it’s a lot shock, spectacle and awe but upon further examination it made not a lot of sense. Lots of nods to the pasts of others and to his own works but as a total it really didn’t have a lot to say. He made a point of conjuring all sorts of questions such as why an hourglass silhouette has on seam pockets, why do some dresses look like they were lopped off after the fact and where are you wearing a probably $20,000 3-piece suit with puddling pants and a bra top...if it sells at all I highly doubt it will be sold as shown!

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The feather lashes were been there done that and who in the world sends out a model with a hole in her stockings while wearing a 5-figure ensemble! Hair was neat/ slick, the model range was much larger than most and by that, I mean in size and age. It might have helped a bit if some of the models didn’t appear to be sleep walking. The men’s pieces were filler and superfluous and as once again why were they even shown!

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PS... don’t expect Sheikha Mozah banging down your door!

Alexandre Vauthier couture spring 2022

In case you haven’t noticed Vauthier understands sex, hot, red carpet and tailoring. He has become a sweetheart on the red carpet for many performers as well as for women who want to look hot, not trashy, not cheap but hot, sexy, glamorous and desirable. Even the shoes speak to all of those qualities which is a rarity in these times when the bigger, flatter and clutzier the shoe the better it seems!

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My question, and it should also be yours, is how much of what we see will be toned down to suit the client as this is direct to client ONLY! I’m not speaking of the clothes that get loaned out but of the clothes that actually are sold; in particular the suitings which reflect his formative years before his eponymous brand. I have always said he is a tailor at heart and yet he has grown to become a wizard of “flou!”

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The clothes offer a much-needed dose of glamour and attitude which does not only translate to an evening gown or beads and sequins. There is a youth factor at work here but it doesn’t only befit young girls/women... it’s for women who require their clothes to speak for their exuberance and that age is but a number. Some scream, some whisper and some just slap you in the face with their intent.

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I’m a fan and I’m proud to be one since I believe he has talent to spare, and the best is yet to come.

Chanel couture spring 2022

First and foremost, we must all get it through our heads that no one can match Karl and to constantly compare Virginie to him is a case where she will ALWAYS come up on the short end of the stick. So, if we look at this collection more objectively, we might find some redeeming qualities about it.

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Chanel made a pants statement... that’s for sure; sometimes the outer side seams were split and other times the inner leg seams split which provided a fluidity that might not have existed especially in the tweeds, while on the subject, they made a major statement in tweeds which didn’t always work given the season and apparent bulk of some.

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In this particular instance, this is a show that should be seen in motion as you just don’t see it all from a still such as the peplum back on some of the scuba inspired jackets and one of the evening stunners with a cowl back. What I don’t understand is that one button semi wrap skirt that is worn over another skirt or a dress. It’s superfluous and in most cases bulky. In another case of ill-advised notions was the sheer midriff pieces that should have been a moment and turned out to be a statement but any fashionphile will tell you no woman wants to expose that part of them let alone in a garment that can make you look fatter and wrinkled! An editor’s pencil would have certainly helped out here as I think a tighter collection would have actually benefitted the overall take away here.

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If memory serves me, evening seemed to be far too long and not very exciting. Many of the exits seemed generic and, in some cases, extremely ill-conceived i.e., the granny dresses in prints and pieces that looked more like negligee rather than evening wear that one might actually wear outside their boudoir. The shoe will be fly out of the stores but alas this collection was almost accessory free which in my opinion is an error for this brand.

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Falling victim to the comparison I warned of, Virginie does not have that final finishing touch that Karl possessed even on his famous “klunkers.” Yes, this season the models were groomed and made up but explain the black eye!!! Let alone Princess Charlotte on a horse to open the show...  if there was anything equestrian about this presentation it apparently evaded me.

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Okay enough said... it was a valiant outing but also a collection that seemed to get to a certain point and then went nowhere... triste!

Dior couture spring 2022

Let’s call it 60 shades of bland and boring! My take is simply that this was supposed to be salable and covetable and yes it was salable, more so than her ready to wear, but there is more at stake here than ready to wear.

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What was the message here? What is she trying to convey with endless white and shades of beige with occasional accents of grey and black? I saw Katherine Graham’s dress from Capote’s black and white ball offered in beige or off white, I saw that minimalism chez Dior equates to boring and yawn worthy, I saw Jackie Kennedy looks that are so out of step with world today and a designer who hasn’t a clue what she or the brand stand for!

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Once again, the Signora’s idea of sexy is transparent and yet she makes it bland, then of course the styling with kitten/louis’ heels on young girls instead of women and a paucity of make up all piled onto some ridiculous notion that these clothes reflect the DNA of Maison Dior.

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I couldn’t wait to read the review for her to explain in her esoteric and faux intellectual word salad about how and why we should view the relationship with primitive cave like paintings and the clothes that were shown ... other than the fact that her crusade for feminism has been abandoned and she is searching for any raison d’être!

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Let’s just say there is absolutely nothing here to really speak of other than why bother to present 60 generic tired looks? Let me say the final exit of the model with a wedgie was a perfect ending!

Schiaparelli couture spring 2022

Daniel Roseberry clearly speaks “Schiaparelli” ... the vocabulary and language of the brand’s eponymous designer. I can’t say that these clothes are created for commercial use but I can say they are covetable in much the same way that Thierry Mugler’s couture was!

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Roseberry makes exceptional use of the ateliers and most especially of the metalworks that create the Calder like, surreal and Schiaparellian motifs employed to be part of a given look. It is clear that Roseberry does not go quietly into couture and that he has no desire to tip toe his way in... he has arrived! Statement making clothes that might be worn once or twice but I’m guessing are most certainly collected by a reignited fashion cult that can afford the prices.

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Notice an emphasis on the horizontal from hem to hat with an hourglass shape in between. These are not easy to wear nor are they just something you throw on to run an errand, but they are inarguably spectacular in their own way.

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So, it’s up to you ... either you love them or you don’t! You cannot deny Roseberry respect for upholding the DNA of the brand while carving a niche for himself with the vocabulary and iconography of the brand!

Hermès FALL 2022 MENS

Perhaps “every major retailer” won’t be flocking to fill their stores with the latest offerings from Hermès especially because it’s not “collectible (yet doesn’t ever lose its value value)” but is WEARABLE ... if you can afford it!

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Some I’m sure will say the collection is a yawn but I found it to be relaxed true to its DNA and that some of the underpinnings might have been quite “fashionable” and not necessarily a la Hermès... in a good way!

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The collection was knit and outerwear dense with some wonderful sweaters and lots of outerwear for those who actually buy clothes to wear and not stare at or be stared at when wearing. Whether or not you recognize the Swedish army officers coat of the 70s translated into the Hermès vocabulary is inconsequential as those pieces are quite refreshing in a way. The silhouette is relaxed, unpretentious, neat and of course classic and timeless.

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It wouldn’t be Hermès unless there were a few incredible croco pieces and this season did not fail to disappoint... after all which would you want...  a varsity/bomber from Hermès or the same style from Vuitton in red... with or without the bee keeper’s baseball cap that is sure to only increase in value on eBay?

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So, the question is, point blankly, do you want clothes to stare at or to be stared at when wearing or simply clothes to wear!

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