Viktor & Rolf Haute Couture F/W 13.14 Paris

[bennyboy]

Yesterday evening Viktor&Rolf showed their first Haute Couture collection in 13 years, celebrating the 20th anniversary of the brand and paying tribute to Haute Couture as a laboratory for experimentation and pure creation.

The 20 looks of the collection - one look for each year - are executed entirely in a black, technical silk and manipulated in various ways to create the effect of a stone-surface. Every girl in the tableau vivant of the Zen Garden takes on a different pose and each piece is designed specifically for this posture.



/Viktor&Rolf FB

 

[ForChicSake]

I don't what all this was but it made laugh so hard I miss the great clothes

 

[maxlinden]

This was very Comme Des Garcons. I didn't quite understand the venue and why the models were being posed on stage but I'm sure if I did I may appreciate this collection more

 

[mistress_f]

The Style.com review gives a little info on the concept

July 3, 2013 PARIS

By Nicole Phelps

It's been thirteen years since Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren were on the Couture calendar. They staged their comeback tonight in honor of their label's twentieth anniversary—"there's no better way to celebrate," Rolf said, adding that it was also an effort to "divide our wearable side and our conceptual side."

High concept it was. The show was set in a mock Japanese garden, with painted raked sand and a few outcroppings of foam rocks. To start, Horsting and Snoeren walked out, sat down back-to-back, closed their eyes, and proceeded to meditate for a good five minutes. Coming as this did at the end of a week of Paris menswear and Couture shows, one photographer in the pit couldn't resist providing a soundtrack of "ohm"s. Their meditation over, the designers took their places on either side of the stage and the models began appearing.

All twenty wore the same black fabric, a technical silk that had the spongy look of neoprene, and flat ropy sandals. The first look out, a shirtdress, had strange, deflated volumes above the knees in front and below them in back. Having made her circuit, the model sat down and Snoeren pulled the hem of her dress down over her ankles. He had turned her into a rock. The process repeated nineteen times. One particularly sculptural dress was big enough to cover a model's entire supine form (its black fringe was meant to resemble grass); another tent dress cloaked not only the kneeling model wearing it but also the girl who was curled up in a fetal position next to her. After the last model was transformed and before the curtain fell, Horsting and Snoeren gave each other a bow.

Instant Zen garden. When asked about the project's genesis, Viktor said, "We've been running around for so long, we thought, let's enjoy where we are. Our current state of mind is mindfulness." The thoughtful, clever show was a credit to meditation, a brainy chaser after a week of chiffon and crystals. The best part: Conceptual didn't come at the cost of wearable. There were some great coats and dresses here; we liked look 9 in particular. The word backstage was that half of the collection has already been snapped up by a collector.

 

[Chanelcouture09]

I find the construction absolutely stunning, I have sheer admiration for this collection based on the process it took to construct such technically diverse pieces, a true couture collection - however, I am left slightly deflated at the simplicity of the pieces (i.e. lack of embroideries) but that being said I like the contrast from the usual couture outings from other houses where more is more.

 

[StoneSkipper]

Full video!

 

[williscrazy]

as interesting and artistic as the collection is, it seems like the pieces are individual puzzles and only work when placed together in a certain way, the way the asymmetrical shapes are created to accomodate the whole picture , it makes me wonder if the looks can shine on their own. because when the models are just walking showcasing the garments, the awkward pop out shapes makes me cringe a bit.

 

[Benzo]

Their collection has been very commercial these few years. Great to see them in HC again.

 

[TianSoFine]

I don't know how I feel about this as fashion, but I do really love it as art!

 

[Littleathquakes]

I didn't get it at first, but after reading the thought process behind it, I see it. Very poetic, smooth, fluid. The craftsmanship is expected of HC **coughDiorcough**. It is indeed a calming experience - very much like a zen garden.

 

[simple_elegance]

Bleeeeeh...