Even before the abrupt lights out and soundtrack cut at Rei Kawakubo's Comme des Garçons Homme Plus show, the designer left us pondering an aesthetic war between necessity and frivolity - her silhouettes toying with the balance of scruffy schoolboys and their dandy prom night counterparts. An opening passage of trim, tailored suiting was missing all the vital pockets (oval cut-outs hit at the heart and hip-level), while elsewhere jackets featured frayed, zippered windows. Beneath those, what started as clean, white shirting became more opulent look by look, as Kawakubo injected ruffles and frills galore, extending below blazers, or poking out as prom king yokes. Glitter zebra and polka dot jacquards fronted the season's exuberant finale, as the designer finished with layered, lapel-shaped scarves (or were they vests?) in a pointed question of formality and excess.
Photography: Anna Stokland/Jason Lloyd-Evans
-
Broken up into six pavilions, this brutalist Mexican house is embedded in the landscapeSordo Madaleno’s brutalist Mexican house, Rancho del Bosque, is divided up into a series of pavilions to preserve the character of its hillside site, combining concrete, curves and far-reaching views
-
Etihad Airways’ A321LR redefines the single-aisle experienceAbu Dhabi’s flagship carrier brings wide-body sensibility to its new generation Airbus aircraft, a rethink of what short and medium-haul travel can feel like
-
Ralph Steadman has worked with everyone from Hunter S. Thompson to Travis Scott and Quavo – now, the Gonzo illustrator is celebrated in LondonA new exhibition provides a rare opportunity to experience the inimitable work and creativity of Gonzo illustrator Ralph Steadman up close. Just don’t call it a ‘style’.
