An inflatable black leather lobster claw invitation with a pool toy-style air stopper offered a clue that Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez were leading a deep-sea expedition for their sophomore Loewe show. Guests arrived at the Château de Vincennes, crossed the dry moat, and discovered an otherworldly mise-en-scène created by Cologne-based installation artist Cosima von Bonin. Giant blue velvet octopi, hermit crabs, scallops, orcas, and belugas perched on oversize shoeboxes like attendees. As social media editors darted frantically, thrusting tiny microphones at a raft of celebrities including Sarah Pidgeon, Sandra Bernhard, and Sissy Spacek, the big-eyed plushies seemed to regard it all with bemused detachment. Would that they could tell us what they were thinking.
In their show notes, McCollough and Hernandez framed their design philosophy through a quotation from scholar James P. Carse’s Finite and Infinite Games: A Vision of Life as Play and Possibility: “A finite game is played for the purpose of winning, an infinite game for the purpose of continuing the play.” They followed with their own question: “What is fashion but an open field for endless creative play?” In every exaggerated silhouette and whimsical detail, the collection offered an affirmative response. Building on the layering and color-blocking motifs introduced in their debut, the duo embraced a liberated, experimental approach, turning familiar silhouettes into joyful, huge forms. Parkas and scarves were inflated to whale-size proportions using a specialized industrial process of laser-cutting, bonding, and sealing to create airtight seams, while double-breasted coats sprouted manta ray-like inflatable gingham wings. Trompe l’oeil pointelle-knit slips and pajama tops were cast in latex, giving them a slick, scuba-like sheen.
This being Loewe, the Spanish leather-goods heritage house celebrating its 180th anniversary, McCollough and Hernandez drew on the atelier’s extraordinary expertise, transforming leather into currents of whimsy. Dolphin-sleek tartan sweaters and dresses were knitted from ultra-thin leather “yarn,” while “bouclé” coats made from looped, lacquered leather and layered over tonal hoodies gave models a spiny, sea urchin-esque appearance. Triple hoods on parkas added appendages, suggesting the wearers could be members of the cephalopod family. Accessories joined the oceanic fantasy: the Amazona satchel sported crab charms inspired by von Bonin’s sculptures and the Flamenco clutch appeared in a blue-and-white pattern. The new Whisker bag in glazed calfskin combined structure and fluidity, with a defined top and handle lending form to a gracefully undulating body.
This article was originally published on
