Kiko Kostadinov S/S 2020 London Fashion Week Men's
Mood board: Much of Kiko Kostadinov’s quirky, perverse utilitarian get-up is inspired by workwear and archetypal uniforms. For S/S20 this manifests as a breadth of aerodynamic seams and graphic lines. The Bulgarian-born designer is one of the youngest pushing the boundaries of pattern cutting and playful garment construction on the London schedule. His style is part sci-fi, part boyish kitsch. Abstraction was key for the season – hammered jockey silk bombers and fluid shorts were worn with graphic, checkerboard cycling shorts, long socks and high shiny boots – the knee left naked and proud.
Best in show: The bold line of early 20th-century Constructivism was applied as graphic paneling in red, white and black across blousons or as circles on zip front shirts. The movement – created by the Russian avant-garde – manipulated new materials to serve modern society; Kostadinov’s eighth collection throbbed with an optimism for hi-tech machismo. Aerodynamic textile met equestrian shapes. The hacking jacket, Watteau-back belted trench and Lavallière shirts channeled mid-century volume in odd shades of spearmint, turquoise and apricot. Standout were the tailored suits in Italian virgin wool, Japanese cupro and recycled twill; contrast cuffs and curvilinear front seams warped the sartorial into the surreal. Seams were purposeful, the line sharp.
Finishing touches: The foot was central to the look, which came with a range of go-go boots and sneakers. A tall patchwork riding boot and cut-off Chelsea style shoe were made up of curved swatches of multi-coloured leather. They had a 1960s Barbarella kink. Elsewhere, the designer’s fifth Asics collaboration featured a cushioned FlyteFoam sole with floral tread, a curled toe and embossed checkerboard overlay.
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London based writer Dal Chodha is editor-in-chief of Archivist Addendum — a publishing project that explores the gap between fashion editorial and academe. He writes for various international titles and journals on fashion, art and culture and is a contributing editor at Wallpaper*. Chodha has been working in academic institutions for more than a decade and is Stage 1 Leader of the BA Fashion Communication and Promotion course at Central Saint Martins. In 2020 he published his first book SHOW NOTES, an original hybrid of journalism, poetry and provocation.
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