February 2023’s dose of fashion borrows a thing or two from the intimacies of art.
Pictured Above: Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama
After 10 years, famed Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama lends her whimsical eye again to a second collection for Louis Vuitton. In the first-drop phase of the renewed collaboration, motifs of handpainted, metal, infinity and psychedelic dots from Kusama’s lasting yet always-evolving works find new meaning in the house’s cross-category line of accessories, ready-to-wear, fragrances and its signature leather goods. This tasteful reinterpretation of art as fashion brilliantly delivers as a takeover of the Louis Vuitton Maison — which includes for the first time, menswear in its host of offerings.
Burberry Landscapes
Within the ethos of a historic house lies its lore. For Burberry, it relies on the sentiment of the great outdoors, where its founder Thomas Burberry reimagined its possibilities with his timeless solutions and of course, the iconic check. Burberry Landscapes — an ongoing larger-than-life series — looks at the British Canary Islands and the South African Western Cape for its takeover. Created using milk-based paint, Cuban- American contemporary artist Jorge Rodriguez-Gerada brought the Burberry Check colours to life on the landscapes, which were then carefully washed away with manual turning, wind and water sources leaving no lasting marks behind.
Loewe x Studio Ghibli
Jonathan Anderson, creative director of Loewe has devoted his works at the house to escapism. While it includes gargantuan takes on design, his most fleeting creations materialise with the brand’s ongoing collaboration with Studio Ghibli. Having released the Spirited Away collection last year, he reunites with the Japanese animation studio for the pair’s third and final collaborative capsule. This time, the focus is on the 2004 fantasy film Howl’s Moving Castle — which includes beloved characters such as Kakashi no Kabu, Calcifer and Markl in his iconic disguise. As with the previous drops, the collection sees these characters transposed effortlessly on its ready-to-wear garments, bags and accessories.
Bottega Veneta x Gaetano Pesce
With just two seasons under his belt, creative director Matthieu Blazy has displayed a series of unprecedented commissions at Bottega Veneta. In the presentation of his Spring/Summer 2023 collection last September, architect, artist and designer Gaetano Pesce was given the creative carte blanche to produce a temporary site-specific artwork, which included a sculptural resin floor and 400 resin chairs. The artist calls the creation “Come Stai?”, which was later further unveiled at Design Miami and evolved into a new book commissioned by Bottega Veneta. It includes an insightful interview between Pesce and Hans Ulrich Obrist alongside its ideation, approach, and process.
Celine Romy
Known for his iconoclast, youth-fuelled creations, Hedi Slimane pushes things up the notch with the release of Celine’s iconic Romy bag for men. Having built a rich discography of menswear over 25 years as a fashion designer, Slimane presents himself as an artist; his ongoing exploration of the new wave focuses on self-discovery this time. The Romy bag — revealed as a women’s bag in the Celine Fall/Winter 2022 collection — emerges this season as a radical symbol of hybridity, where its discreet design transcends gender-imposed boundaries.
This story on the must know fashion news of the month first appeared in the February 2023 issue. Click here to catch up with the issue.
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