Paris - RTW SS13 - Dries Van Noten

City: Paris
Season: Ready-To-Wear, Spring/Summer 2013
Show: Dries Van Noten

The meeting of eastern costume with western dress is not entirely new - Jack and Lazaro of Proenza Schouler have been channelling the samurai as recently as Autumn/Winter 2012, while Italian maestro Giorgio Armani’s recent nods to Japanese culture have been anything but subtle - but, here’s a wacky notion, how about Far East meets the Pacific Northwest? It is a novel culture clash, and in the capable hands of Mr Dries Van Noten it works well. As soon as Kel Markey (top left) emerged wearing sheer plaid, her face almost obliterated by those iconic white sunglasses, Spring/Summer 2013’s main inspiration was made crystal clear. The iconic black and white photograph of Kurt Cobain in the original Christian Roth shades was an overriding influence, and many of the models sported close replicas of the distinctive bug-eyed frames. Yet this was not a rehashing of the Marc Jacobs/Perry Ellis grunge collection. No sir. In fact, for a show so heavily informed by Kurt and the still-reigning Courtney Love, the overall effect was decidedly un-grunge. The pieces may have been louche but they also conveyed elegance. Of course plaid was in abundance, giving, as Alicia Silverstone in Clueless put it, ‘a nod to the crispy Seattle weather.' But forget those heavy flannel shirts you see floating around in vintage stores - at Dries Van Noten plaid was given a light, diaphanous overhaul. Julia Nobis and her two sheer gowns (top centre and bottom right) offered the best evidence of this. Circling back to the aforementioned collision of cultures, the Orient-meets-Olympic Peninsula vibe was never more apparent than on Lara Mullen (centre right): the puckish Northampton-born beauty wore head-to-toe check with a tie-waisted kimono jacket on top. So very wrong on paper, so very right at Dries. The late Nirvana frontman and his hard-rocking widow lent their iconic early 1990s’ looks to the hair and make-up at Dries also; mane man Paul Hanlon gave the fairer haired girls grown-out roots by brushing in sooty MAC eyeshadows, while Chanel make-up master Peter Phillips was responsible for that matte magenta lip (Rouge Allure Velvet in #37 L'Exubérante, for the record). To conclude, I love every element of this Spring/Summer 2013 collection, from the lived-in locks to the floaty mousseline. Mr Van Noten is fast becoming one of my utmost favourite designers. Viva la Kurt, kiddies.

This piece was originally published on alisonlaurabell.tumblr.com in October 2012.