Arthur Arbesser S/S 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's

Mood board: Grandmothers are proving a point of inspiration on the S/S 2020 catwalks. Richard Malone dedicated his spring offering to his hospital seamstress grandmother Nellie, who inspired in him an unerring and class resistant approach to creativity. Vienna-born Arbesser’s collection began when he found a box of fabric swatches that belonged to his grandmother Matilda, who was born in Siebenbuergen, today’s modern Romania. ‘It was an archive of prints and patterns from the Twenties to the Eighties when she stopped buying clothes,’ he said backstage. ‘She had a very sacred attachment to the past.’ These swatches informed the swirling Transylvanian ceramics-inspired prints and graphic, post-war architectural patterns in the collection, which featured – in Arbesser’s colourful and eccentric style – hem curling knitwear, paneled silk skirts, cinching sailor collar jackets and gauzy diamond lace dresses.
Finishing touches: ‘The collection had a serious silhouette with a childish twist,’ Arbesser explained of incorporating the kidswear swatches he’d found in Matilda’s fabric box. Playful pizzazz came courtesy of cloud-like oversized berets trailing with fronts of ostrich feathers, and Calderian mobile earrings dangling with mirrored letter ‘A’s.
Best in show: Arbesser used his heirloom discovery to consider the patchwork of his own work life. This culminated in a series of paneled shirts, trousers and long vests formed from swatches of fabrics from his past collections, dyed in the washing machine to a uniform grey. ‘It’s my own little story in fabric,’ he said. ‘The only way you can design fashion is to tell a story that is really your own.’
Arthur Arbesser S/S 2020 Women's at Milan Fashion Week
Arthur Arbesser S/S 2020 Women's at Milan Fashion Week
Arthur Arbesser S/S 2020 Women's at Milan Fashion Week
Arthur Arbesser S/S 2020 Women's at Milan Fashion Week
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
The Subaru Forester is the definition of unpretentious automotive design
It’s not exactly king of the crossovers, but the Subaru Forester e-Boxer is reliable, practical and great for keeping a low profile
By Jonathan Bell
-
Sotheby’s is auctioning a rare Frank Lloyd Wright lamp – and it could fetch $5 million
The architect's ‘Double-Pedestal’ lamp, which was designed for the Dana House in 1903, is hitting the auction block 13 May at Sotheby's.
By Anna Solomon
-
Naoto Fukasawa sparks children’s imaginations with play sculptures
The Japanese designer creates an intuitive series of bold play sculptures, designed to spark children’s desire to play without thinking
By Danielle Demetriou
-
Milan Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2023: Fendi to Prada
From Prada’s exploration of archetypal menswear garments to JW Anderson’s much-anticipated debut in the city, the best of Milan Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2023, as it happens
By Jack Moss
-
Milan Fashion Week A/W 2022: Prada to Bottega Veneta
In this extended report, Scarlett Conlon reports live from the Milan Fashion Week A/W 2022 shows, with rolling coverage as they take place on the runway
By Scarlett Conlon
-
The filmic vision of Paris’ virtual men’s fashion week
Take an in-depth look at the trends of Paris' fashion week for Spring/Summer 2021, where brands turned to the moving image to express their collections virtually
By Pei-Ru Keh
-
Giorgio Armani A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins
-
Bottega Veneta A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins
-
Ports 1961 A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins
-
BOSS A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins
-
Dolce & Gabbana A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins