Friday, October 30, 2009

At Dries Van Noten, West meets East for a makeover!

Creator: Dries Van Noten


Show: Spring Summer 2010 RTW (Women)

Date Held: Oct 4th 2009

Place: 7, Place Vendôme, Paris

Inspiration: ethnic fabrics from the east like Ikats from Uzbekistan, batiks from Bali, Banarasi silk from India and chinoiserie from China

Color Palette: Varied - emerald green, mustard yellow, lemon yellow, ink blue, pink, gold, silver

Collection's Composition: boxy emerald green jackets with Chinese embroideries, heavily beaded shirts, pink brocade coat with gold brocade, dresses wrapped like a saree, slim cut cropped pants, ikat printed cuffed shorts, short saree skirt with a floor grazing drape, a strong-shouldered jacket lavishly embroidered in silver, micro floral print pants

Accessories: black tipped pumps with emerald metallic heels, ikat print pumps, multi roped pearls hung with a large crystals, chunky collars of semi precious beads hung with rectangular metallic pendants, bold cuffs composed of diamante, crystals and dazzling stones, bags in beige contrasted with black lining, emerald green clutch in metallic skin, red envelope clutch in gold brocade, ikat print clutches

Pièces de résistance:


Philosophy Behind Collection: Dries described the collection as "authentic". By using the antique skills of Indian weavers working on hand looms and ethnic fabrics from Bali, Sumatra and Uzbekistan, Dries stressed the importance of not forgetting the past but rather applying it in today's context and enriching ourselves in the process. A good moral lesson during recession!

High Points:
Who but the genius Dries could have thought that something as common (at least in India) as an ikat printed silk saree could be transformed into dresses and skirts resplendent in Parisian chic, that a blazer could be cut out of a heavily worked silver threaded Banarasi saree or a delicate pink gold brocaded saree could transform itself into a crisp cuffed shorts? It was as if a young European girl on the cusp of womanhood was playing dress up with an Indian woman's sarees dreaming of cutting them into trousers, shorts and blazers and wrapping them into dresses and skirts to suit her tastes, thereby juxtaposing tradition with modernity! The ikat print shoes and purses in addition to the heavy weight pearl chokers are also worthy closet inclusions.

Low Points:
The collection as such didn't leave anything to grouse about, except at times the styling seemed to fall a bit short especially in those places where the look was getting a bit busy with too many prints vying for attention.

Image Source:www.catwalking.com www.style.com


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