Simply Abu Dhabi Magazine XVIII

2 3 5 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I The transposing of traditional technical details is employed at the service of structural form; bodices become skirts, jackets become blouses, smocking and openwork structures, while the construction of footwear is hand-knitted. A repeated layering of traditional silk jacquards appears as a purposeful stratification of history, while new ‘micro jacquards’ take the form of a digital grid, resonating with the traditional Dior Cannage quilting, itself elaborated on and transformed in the leather goods. “I started to think ‘what is modern?’ I wanted to deal with a form language that looks to be almost the opposite of my original inspiration at Dior,” says Raf Simons. “It was an idea of confronting what people now think is an aesthetic that is modern – it felt more modern to go to the far past, not the ‘modernised’ look of the last decade. The challenge was to bring the attitude of contemporary reality to something very historical; bringing easiness to something that could be perceived as theatrical. It is the attitude that matters.” And with this aesthetically inspiring collection, Simon has succeeded in his challenge. The clothes are full of attitude: a fluid, modern grace combined with a refined sense of feminine elegance. Simons makes the modern look easy, by reinterpreting the past with fresh eyes and innovative techniques. Simply gorgeous.