Laser cutting makes it mark on fashion

Would it be reaching to suggest the transparency we are yearning for right now (after months of opaque leadership and confusion) had already manifested in the SS20 collections by way of clothes that you could actually see right through? Perhaps. In any case, the technique of laser cutting is prevalent, and brings welcome inherent lightness and modernity to several collections this summer.

To celebrate its 10 year anniversary this summer, Akris produced a new version of its signature Ai bag in laser cut black leather gird. The original bag is inspired by creative director Albert Kriemler’s deep affinity for architecture. Recalling a trip he took to the Jinhua Architecture Park near Shanghai, China back in 2008, he says: ‘The newly designed pavilion created by young Mexican architect Tatiana Bilbao especially stood out for me with its distinct trapezoid shape.' This season’s iteration of the handbag required particular technical fineness.

‘To create the new laser-cut Ai bag, two layers of cervocalf leather are bonded together and through a high-tech laser procedure the pattern is cut out while the edges are colored at the same time to achieve a fully refined product. The grid design is inspired by a beautiful embroidered fabric used in the Akris SS20 Ready-to-wear collection.'

Elsewhere, Maison Martin Margiela’s precisely-crafted, single-breasted blazer in neoprene-coated wool has an intricate honeycomb pattern punched out of the fabric. Rendered so light from the laser-cutting technique, Berluti’s double-breasted pony skin overcoat is the happy confluence of sartorially-natured sportwear. The perforation of its surface injects an airy modernism into a traditionally substantial material. Geox, the Italian manufacturer known for its breathable fabrics, translated its speciality into perforated leather trainers with a clean and classic vintage appeal.