FALL / WINTER 2022 COLLECTIONS

BONNIE CLYDE — LOS ANGELES

ELENA VELEZ — NYC / MILWAUKEE

Year One — Maidenhood & Its Labors — is the continued exploration of the aggressive yet delicate universe of Elena Velez and a dissertation of our woman and her relationship to industry, obligation and aphrodisia. 

With an inquisitive appreciation of aftermath societies and the creativity that thrives in a post-fallout economy, there is a particular reverence for history from which this season's character study of our woman begins. Where Year Zero was born from a moment of collective anxiety, Year One addresses the symbiotic tension of womanhood and the conflicting scenarios of life. Echoing the paradoxical understanding of femininity in bygone eras, we begin to consider her more modern characteristics: gritty, fortuitous and industrial, all in her own right. Surface treatments and distressed techniques like rust baths, tea stains, gravel and grit provide historical context for design references while placing the work back into society through our lens. These treatments also create a unique collaboration with the wearer and initiate a living work of art, showcasing the true marks of authenticity and embracing the unglamorous happenstance of life. 

Steeped in history we find the setting for this season’s show: the Georgia Room within Freehand Hotel New York, stripped of its everyday decoration in a greater effort to showcase its bare architectural beauty. The original caryatids that anchor the parameter of the studio are reminiscent of ship figureheads, paying homage to Velez’s strongest familial tie: her mother, a ship captain on the Great Lakes. 

Rooted in her rustbelt upbringing, the woman behind the brand is a product of her surroundings and honors traditional and regional craftsmanship. Site-specific materiality adds to the designs authenticity while pulling from a subculture of makers and other creators who are too often overlooked simply for their geographical location. This condescension has emblazoned us to create a community outside of traditional creative capitals to showcase these equally important perspectives in order to create a more holistic vision of American fashion.
Materialization: laminated military canvas, repurposed parachutes, Lake Michigan ship sails, leather, linen, gauze, wool

HOUSE OF AAMA — LOS ANGELES

“Bloodroot: Into the Archives” — A new rendition of the nostalgia inspired Heritage Bloodroot collection shown in 2017, which introduced the brand's storytelling appeal and timeless silhouettes. The collection is inspired by the rare herb bloodroot which has been used by old-time conjures and root workers as a powerful Guardian for the Family- An ode to Southern Creole spiritually and African Roots. Reimagining the brand's folklore narratives, “Bloodroot: Into the Archives,”is an archival find of the Rootworker, Southern lady and Bluesman archetypes unearthed for a new audience.

By continuing our creative process of exploring this collection edit explored our core timeless, classic, silhouettes from the nostalgic Bloodroot collection by probing new colorways and patterns from the beloved Victorian lace dress, pussybow blouses, military workwear suit sets and jackets.

LÙCHEN NY — NYC

We began this season by exploring the notion of how our intangible thoughts and beliefs may truly exist, and further questioned what they may look like. Our Fall/Winter 2022 collection serves as an interpretation and manifestation of those things that only exist within. 

 This season, the LÙCHEN collection depicts a whimsical dream world composed of the interweaving of both real and surreal experiences. Oscillating between how our physical bodies perceive things in reality with what our minds create in the metaphysical world presents a duality that serves as the conceptual starting point for designer Lu Chen. Her aim for this collection is to create an experience in which we can perceive such concepts within the confines of our physical world. 

For the brand’s runway debut, Chen chose to showcase her collection on a multitude of artists and creators alongside models to draw from their own respective crafts. From a milliner to a sculptor, trained dancers and documenters, each were brought on to collaborate in a multitude of ways and fuse their own individuality with the materiality of LÙCHEN’s designs. The result is a somewhat of an orchestral fusion of capricious creations, all in tune and under the direction of Chen’s conceptual vision. 

The LÙCHEN collection continues to explore different possibilities of draping and materiality while experimenting with the process of deconstruction and reconstruction. Blending fine tailoring with purposeful deconstruction, these pieces blend the rational qualities and their innate sense of familiarity and functionality with a striking sense of specificity. Structural fabrics that emphasize construction tell their own story with the wearer as the texture evolves and gathers on the body. The luxurious draping speaks to the romantics and emphasizes an elegance with ease, a considered choice that favors identity over labels.  Whether sleek or structured in silhouette, there is always a curious study of textures that both juxtaposes moments of refinement while embracing a sense of contradiction. One example is the signature use of sheer overlays, which were once body conscious in the previous collection, now float away from the body to reveal a convey of freedom that embraces the young and creative. 

We dedicate this collection to the endless creative possibilities that exist in both our hearts and minds and how beautifully they can manifest in this world if only we dare to dream them up. 

PH5 — NYC / CHINA

“STAY ON EARTH” — The Fall/Winter 2022 PH5 collection was conceptualized during recent times in which the news was flooded with dubitable excitement around rich tycoons launching into space, and their desire to explore alternative options for human survival as the climate crisis worsens.

Time spent developing the new collection felt as though we were oscillating between two different worlds: one where so many are actively incorporating more holistic means of living and improving the ways we treat our planet; the other so wrapped up in being the crusader of a new frontier yet could monumentally change the course of our fate on Earth. Rather than using their resources for advancement of Climate Action for all of us they’re playing spaceman for the joy of few. We pondered if we could bring the wonder and excitement of space travel back down to Earth? Perhaps this would inspire more to look after the magical and inspiring places we have already discovered — and yet to uncover.

Taking cues from the pop cultures portrayals of space, the visual interpretations that informed the collection came from the retro-futuristic portrayals in movies and sci-fi book illustrations. This Hollywood take on space travel and life in the greater galaxy provided PH5 the lens in which we reinterpreted our signature wavy design and challenged the limits of our technically-advanced knitwear. A 3D bubble group introduces volume inspired by bulbous astro-suits and the idea of floating in space, while also referencing the extra-terrestrial like spaces of the deep sea we have yet to fully explore. These playful shapes help to balance out the best-selling body-con silhouettes, which feature a galactic gradient treatment this season. Beyond the more sculptural silhouettes, color set the stage with a departure from last seasons vibrant hues in favor of cooler secondary hues, black and neutral shades — far from subdued yet pushing past the whimsical vernacular we’ve established in previous collections.

While we cannot sway those who are blasting themselves into space, perhaps we can take a little stye inspiration from a galaxy far far away while finding ways to rediscover the beauty of staying on Earth.