Laura Dern is a Proenza girl, while Theophilio scores at the CFDA awards
Sadior? Dacai? Not every portmanteau has the lyricism of Fendace, Skendi, or Gucciaga, but Sacai and Dior’s collaboration back in June seemed to whisper rather than chant. That is, until last night – when Browns East celebrated the partnership in blockbuster style, aligning itself with all the other hackings, swappings, and crossbreedings of the year. With Cktrl ringing in the evening, the entire ground floor of the Shoreditch boutique has been swallowed by the collection, making it the largest installation that Browns has ever committed to. “The raw energy of Browns East and Shoreditch offers the perfect synergy to this capsule which genuinely embodies the mutual respect these two incredible creatives, Kim and Chitose, have for one another,” Ida Petersson, buying director, says. Techy-looking saddle bags, spliced bombers, and creamy, ventilated knitwear make up a slither of the 57-piece offering, which is on display until November 21.
In other news, Daniel Lee made a shock exit from Bottega Veneta this week, which sent high fashion Twitter conspiracy theorists into overdrive. The former creative director is – allegedly – going to join Phoebe Philo’s new label, take the reins at Burberry, start his own line, and head up Dior. Busy! Meanwhile, Donatella got a new gig designing Britney’s wedding dress, Lady Gaga revealed Val Garland as the originator of her meat dress, just as Chanel hiked its prices for the fourth time since the pandemic began, and Supreme opened its first Berlin outpost.
Click through the gallery below for the rest of this week’s fashion news.
LAURA DERN BECAME A PROENZA GIRL
A Proenza Schouler and Mercedes Benz collaboration dropped this week, starring Laura Dern as model and muse. Dubbed The Power of Two, the collection is an ode to wide American roads, reinterpreting the Mercedes logo across tie-dye tees, fuzzy blanket-bags, slouchy knitwear, and crisp, sage-coloured trench coats, and tailored trousers. Lensed by Harley Weir, the campaign also features Dern’s son, Ellery Harper, styled by Joe McKenna.
NINAMOUNAH IS WAVING THE FLAG FOR TBILISI PRIDE
With a little help from director Matt Lambert, Ninamounah has created four limited edition fetish print scarfs, celebrating queer intimacy and sex-positivity, while raising funds for Tbilisi Pride. Lambert donated his own prints, while Ninamounah is covering production costs, meaning all proceeds from the sales of the scarves go to the organisation, which had its headquarters destroyed in a violent, homophobic attack earlier this year. The project debuted this week at Amsterdam’s Stevenson Gallery before heading to Club Church for a night of music and drag performances. Head online to nab a scarf.
BURBERRY FUNDED BIODIVERSITY INITIATIVES
With COP26 well underway, Burberry built on its climate strategy with another pledge, a biodiversity plan to protect, restore, and regenerate nature. This includes offsetting its use of wool, leather, and cashmere by funding projects that ensure natural ecosystems are protected – like PUR, which implements a regenerative agricultural programme with wool producers in Australia, improving carbon capture in soils, strengthening watershed and soil health, and promoting biodiverse habitats. Read more about Burberry’s pledge here.
VALENTINO RELEASED A FASHION YEARBOOK
This winter, Valentino launched an expansive editorial project, recruiting magazines from across the globe to produce an imaginary campaign based on its signature V logo. There were 26 contributions in total, including Dazed, which you can see here, all of which have been compiled into a hardback book – “a sort of alternative fashion yearbook that uses creation as a design matrix,” as the label says. The book is available to buy online at Flash Art.
ACNE STUDIOS PLATFORMED YOUNG ARTISTS
As part of its Image Makers series, Acne Studios is tapping a bevy of up-and-coming photographers, this time sending its collection out into Odda and the remote Folgefonna glaciers. Maria Pasenau slips into the label’s AW21 outerwear, expanding on her Day by Day project, documenting herself, all unvarnished and Juergen Teller-y, in and around her home. See more here.
Courtesy of MonclerMATTHEW WILLIAMS FLEXES HIS GENIUS
Unveiling his latest collaboration with Moncler, Matthew Williams has forged a “utopian uniform”, which threads between light and dark, soft and hard, matt and shiny. The collection marks the penultimate Moncler Genius collab of the year and has been showcased in a technicolour, Elizaveta Porodina-lensed lookbook. Alongside column puffers, cropped gilets, and lacquered trenches, Williams’ offering includes two, Italian Greyhound-sized looks. Check it out here.
APOC OPENED ITS CHRISTMAS GROTTO
APOC Store, the berserk marketplace for new designers, has asked its creatives to develop a series of weird and wonderful gifts for the Christmas period. Having been challenged to work with what they already have, brands have been diligently repurposing deadstock, to plump up our yuletide stockings. Head over to APOC store to see what exactly is on offer.
… AS DID ARIES
Also lighting its advent candle is London label Aries, having opened its Christmas gift shop yesterday. Planet Aries will see the reintroduction of its beloved styles, including bone china mugs, animal print blankets, the re-release of the sold-out Hillier Bartley collaboration, and a brand-new incense collaboration with Cremate. Gorge yourself here.
BILLY PORTER WILL BE REPRISING PRAYTELL (KIND OF)
Famed for his role as Praytell, the ballroom compere on Pose, Billy Porter will be hosting the British Fashion Council’s annual award ceremony later in the month. “I have been a fashion person for my entire life,” he told The Guardian. “To be inside of the fashion conversation for real is a manifestation of what I always dreamed could be possible.” The ceremony takes place on Monday 29 November at the Royal Albert Hall.
THEOPHILIO SCORED AT THE CFDA AWARDS
The USA’s big fashion awards took place this week, seeing Zendaya officially heralded as a fashion icon. Edvin Thompson of Theophilio was duly celebrated, taking home the award for emerging designer, meanwhile Telfar won for its accessories and Demna Gvasalia scored global womenswear designer. Check out the full list of winners here.
KIM JONES WILL BE RETURNING TO LONDON
Kim Jones has announced London as his next big show venue. The designer will be returning to the UK to showcase his Pre-Fall collection on December 9. “I can’t wait to do a show in my hometown,” Jones said, having shown in Miami, Rome, Tokyo, Paris – anywhere other than the British capital since 2003. Stay tuned for our lowdown on the show next month.
CALL IT A TOM(E) FORD
Tom Ford has released the second tome of his work, which travels back through his most memorable collections, provocative advertisements, celebrity endorsements, and artsy films, picking up in 2005 where his first coffee table book concluded. With a foreward written by Anna Wintour, Ford chronicles his life behind the scenes, the decade-long depression he felt on leaving Gucci, and his subsequent joy when Alessandro Michele took the reins. See more here.
THE ERDEM MAN CAME TO LIFE
Erdem unveiled its debut menswear line on a drizzly West Wittering beach this week, a fitting ode to a collection rooted in English culture. Styled by Dazed’s IB Kamara, the lookbook showcases boiler suits, striped mohair sweaters, velvet corduroy slacks, and wallpaper-worthy shirting. Discover the collection in greater detail over on the Erdem website.