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There’s a whole lot of clothes swapping going on in the world of Dries Van Noten these days. Last month he likened parts of his AW13 menswear collection to pieces a man would borrow from his girlfriend ‘the morning after’, and for his stunning women’s show on Wednesday afternoon at Hôtel de Ville, the wardrobe sharing struck again. “I think the soundtrack said it all,” Dries said backstage, emphasising the importance of his serene, romance-themed show score, which included the likes of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers’ Cheek to Cheek. “It’s love. It’s a certain love between a man and a woman, which in the end makes them become one.” It was a process illustrated to perfection in the show, which opened with a slouchy, mannish formal trouser paired with a loafer and a coat with a pink floral embroidery, but gradually introduced more feminine components like skirts and heels, and more delicate textures such as fringes, marabou feathers, and silks, until the collection reached a total amalgamation of woman and man in the shape of the final exit, a sleeveless dress with a heavily feathered skirt worn over a tailored trouser with flats. It was by no means an easy accomplishment, but in the hands of the Belgian genius, the meeting between the two wardrobes came off entirely unforced. “I just clash them together and see what happens! You have a big grey men’s coat and you start to throw little diamonds and feathers on it,” Dries smiled. “Sometimes I think fashion is so serious, but this was a lot of fun.” Love is a many-splendored thing.
Text: Anders Christian Madsen
Images: Mitchell Sams
