Last season’s energetic step-team production would be difficult to beat no matter what. Still, Rick Owens made a strong point for fall with an imaginative show and a lineup of great clothes that pushed forward with just the right amount of urban verve.
The designer moved his venue to central Trocadéro and cast a group of friends, employees and models, including Kirsten Owen and Nadège. The show subverted fashion norms: several looks came out on multiple rotation, adding a cool vibe that loosely recalled Helmut Lang’s fast-paced shows.
Owens was indeed making a statement for speed, one that extended to the dynamic clothes. With a nod to bondage and fetishism, pieces came in black, gray and deep red; sculptural and textured, with riffs on exaggerated proportion — i.e., large bows at the neck, oversize tops in felted cashmere and his new voluminous drop-crotch romper silhouette (think onesies for adults).
The strictly tailored pieces were not your standard corporate fare and managed to keep the cool streak going, especially the sharp-shouldered coat with pleat insets shown with motorcycle pants.
There was a tribal and futuristic element to the collection — a theme that Owens often explores. The exhaust tubes as hats, while gimmicky, added to the spirit.