An industrial warehouse was the setting for Dries Van Noten’s spring 2013 show. The cavernous building echoed with the buzz of anticipation as the Paris shows got underway. There was a certain hauntingly romantic air about the whole affair, and the tone was set from the very first look.
The show began with a purple and blue organza work shirt over a simple white tank, and was the beginning of a procession of plaids reminscent of the 90s style grunge, embodied by Kurt Cobain back when he rocked the stage in a floral dress. There was an added paradoxical elegance to the ensemble of a plaid shirt paired with a long dark skirt encrusted with sequined appliques of black and brown rosettes down the front. The look, finished by large white oval sunglasses, and bright red lips against pale skin, hinted at Kobain’s significant other, Courtney love.
After several seasons of designing precise, minimal collections, Van Noten took the concept of grunge and elevated it to a higher level mashing up several themes from his signature masculine-feminine aesthetic, to Asian florals, peek-a-boo prints and dropped waist silhouettes from the 20s. “I wanted to go back to having fun with the clothes,” said Van Noten. In a pointed example, a pretty blue, floor length chiffon caftan with a gray flower motif hinted at a red plaid shirt and dark trousers worn underneath. Another seemingly casually dressed model wore a sleeveless, navy, shawl collared jacket with a rounded peplum adorned with appliques, over silvery gray lame` Bermuda shorts, which exemplified some of the above elements. Many of the models wore chunky, silver hardware jewelry and pointy black and white ladylike, kitten heels.
Van Noten combined masculine plaids and checks, with ultra-feminine florals, juxtaposing the more rigid lines of tailored jackets, with light crepe silk, plaid pajama-style pants and wispy chiffon skirts. “It’s everything I love, it has that kind of menswear/womenswear, kind of grungy/spontaneous feel,” added Van Noten. His building blocks were drilled down to the core basics of comfort, pajamas, kimono style wraps, slouchy cardigans and a slip dress all rendered in crepe, chiffon, organza and menswear suiting which appeared heavy, yet were ultra light.
Without question this was definitely one of the best executions of the masculine vs. feminine dynamic. The results were drop dead gorgeous jackets and skirts covered in taffeta rosettes and silvery applique, as well as screenprinted florals on numerous chiffon garments, mixed with supremely cut masculine pieces. Van Noten’s intellectual exploration of a young, gritty, modern style, proved to be an exceptional success.
