Jantaminiau, a Dutch designer, flies the flag for the more avant-garde, experimental side to haute couture. This season he took cork, boiled and treated it to achieve a pliable material that he then used on thigh high, platform boots and extraordinarily, curled into large roses on corked body suits and dresses that were also embroidered with sequins. The palette was shades of brown and beige and to see sheer material gathered and ruched across the body in a way that purposefully mimicked muscular anatomy was a real trip. The final dress had high arching sleeves that contrasted with a long, uneven hemline, embroidered with leaf shaped pieces of material. Arc angel Gabriel meets Miss Haversham cast in cork. It sounds odd but the results were at times astonishing.
All images courtesy of Valerio Mezzanotti and
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