When Modern Technology Meets Couture: Matthew Williams' Long-awaited Debut At Givenchy
When Modern Technology Meets Couture: Matthew Williams' Long-awaited Debut At Givenchy

Video: When Modern Technology Meets Couture: Matthew Williams' Long-awaited Debut At Givenchy

Video: When Modern Technology Meets Couture: Matthew Williams' Long-awaited Debut At Givenchy
Video: Givenchy Spring/Summer 2022 2024, March
Anonim
Givenchy spring-summer 2021
Givenchy spring-summer 2021

When Givenchy announced the name of Claire Waite-Keller's successor, many considered the choice predictable. After Kim Jones at Dior Men and Virgil Abloh at Louis Vuitton, LVMH's new direction was clear - designers balancing the fine line between luxury and streetwear. The new assignment would seem to be just one more move in this game, which was easy to calculate in advance. The first teasers of the future collection with photos of large metal locks only suggested the same thoughts - Matthew Williams has long been known for his passion for accessories and even developed buckles on belts and bags for the first collection of Kim Jones at Dior Men. But his Givenchy debut ultimately showed new facets of creator Alyx.

Givenchy spring-summer 2021
Givenchy spring-summer 2021

The day before the release of the collection, Matthew shared on his personal instagram one of the references - a headdress with horns, in which Naomi Campbell appeared on the catwalk at Alexander McQueen's debut couture show as creative director of the House in 1997. Williams, on the other hand, made the same heels in the shoes from his first collection. The choice, frankly, is not too obvious: the collaboration between the legendary Briton and the French House was not exactly successful, LVMH does not like to remember it very much, and McQueen himself was very skeptical about the talents and legacy of Hubert de Givenchy. And the critics tore at all that collection, calling it pretentious and tasteless. Further more. Williams chose a rather unusual way to present the results of his work: through Instagram stories in the official account of the House. No drawn-out mini-films or traditional screenings - just footage from the lookbook. Now, when designers are vying with each other to reinvent the bicycle and show the new collection in some unusual way, such laconicism in itself attracts attention.

And finally, the clothes themselves. No - surprise - any special references to streetwear. However, Williams himself has been trying in every possible way to distance himself and his brand from this term for a long time. Instead, he puts a lot of emphasis on technology. They also found a place in the collection. The trousers look like they are covered with an ice crust, which has already begun to crack, and the beige evening dress resembles a bandage dress from afar (remember the Hervé Leger brand from the 2000s?), But upon closer inspection it turns out to be intricately cut from thin horizontal strips of fabric. There was practically no expected logomania in the collection - only a couple of modest logos on the bags. But there were locks in abundance, which Williams, by his own admission, intends to use instead of logos and make the same recognizable. They were inspired by an old romantic Parisian tradition - tourists leave them on the bridge in memory of the trip, and the keys are thrown into the Seine. They are used in the collection both as accessories for clothes and accessories (such a clasp on a black men's coat looks especially original), and as independent jewelry - for example, earrings. The already mentioned couture horns by Alexander McQueen, in addition to shoes, also appeared on caps. And in his study of the archives of the House, Matthew Williams did not limit himself to the "British period": there are also references to the founder himself in the collection. For example, sharp, hypertrophied shoulders - it is known that Hubert de Givenchy paid special attention to this part of the silhouette. Interestingly, their effect in jackets is not achieved by shoulder pads,and vertical rectangular panels of fabric on the sleeves are a rather unusual, but very effective solution.

In general, the collection came out pretty smooth - it has enough both the hands of the new creative director, and references to archives. She does not have a specific topic - but this is not characteristic of Williams' approach. He has admitted more than once that he does not set some kind of outline and history for his team, but creates here and now, collecting an overall picture from disparate elements. What it will result in - we will see in another six months. But the beginning turned out to be very promising.

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