Roland Mouret A/W 2014

English designer Roland Mouret always pours his heart out in his press notes, making for a sincere experience during a fashion week that is as a whole anything but. 'It took me over fifty years to get here today, this morning, in this abandoned bank in Paris,' he wrote for his Winter collection. 'And what have I learnt? Sometimes you wake up. Sometimes the fall kills you. And sometimes, when you fall, you fly.' This season, he said, was not about presenting a look or an outfit but rather about advancing his skills as a designer. As such, he took his signature vacuum-sucked, three-quarter length dress silhouette and began cutting away from it piece by piece, collaging it back together with a mixture of materials. Mouret employed snake skin, leather, sheer netting and wools, cutting and pasting them into new vertical stripes or panels across the bodies of dresses and skirts that were yanked left of centre. There was a slight tribal quality to his patterns this season, as he introduced graphic, feathered arrow formations in woven black and white panels, or real feather appliqués across the fronts of dresses. The techniques the designer explored were all of top calibre this season, including the thick wool or printed jersey ribbons of fringe that fell to the floor like hula skirts. But when piled all together, including the leather collars that looked like scrolls of paper, at times his collaging took on a cumbersome effect. Mouret's work is lovely; it just needs a little more room to breathe so that he can truly fly.
Photography: Jason Lloyd-Evans
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
JJ Martin
-
All-In is the Paris-based label making full-force fashion for main character dressing
Part of our monthly Uprising series, Wallpaper* meets Benjamin Barron and Bror August Vestbø of All-In, the LVMH Prize-nominated label which bases its collections on a riotous cast of characters – real and imagined
By Orla Brennan
-
Maserati joins forces with Giorgetti for a turbo-charged relationship
Announcing their marriage during Milan Design Week, the brands unveiled a collection, a car and a long term commitment
By Hugo Macdonald
-
Through an innovative new training program, Poltrona Frau aims to safeguard Italian craft
The heritage furniture manufacturer is training a new generation of leather artisans
By Cristina Kiran Piotti
-
Palace unites with Rapha to celebrate inaugural Tour de France Femmes
Marking the first time women will compete in the historic cycling race since the late 1980s, this new collaboration sees Palace Skateboards and Rapha create uniforms for both on and off the bike – including an ‘outlandish’ pair of Crocs
By Jack Moss
-
Paris Fashion Week A/W 2022: Chanel to Miu Miu
In this extended report, Wallpaper* updates you live from Paris Fashion Week A/W 2022 shows, with rolling coverage as runway events unfold
By Jack Moss
-
Scene-stealing runway sets from S/S 2022 womenswear shows
From giant roulette wheels to Olympic diving boards and multi-city synchronized extravaganzas – our pick of the best fashion show sets from S/S 2022 womenswear
By Laura Hawkins
-
Louis Vuitton A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins
-
Chanel A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women’s
By Laura Hawkins
-
Y/Project A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins
-
Sacai A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins
-
Alexander McQueen A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women’s
By Laura Hawkins