Duro Olowu's latest collection took inspiration from the Fauvist painter Kees van Dongen, and something about the artist's work really got the designer's juices flowing.
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Duro Olowu's latest collection took inspiration from the Fauvist painter Kees van Dongen, and something about the artist's work really got the designer's juices flowing.
Duro Olowu's latest collection took inspiration from the Fauvist painter Kees van Dongen, and something about the artist's work really got the designer's juices flowing. This was a larger collection than Olowu usually produces, and one more varied in its textures and silhouettes than recent outings.
Alongside his signature capes and tailored mixed-print dresses, there were less familiar pieces, such as a flounced tank and full skirt of black lace and silk taffeta, a voluminous and very glam gown of pastel brocade, and formal shirtdresses in sliced organza or damask that featured dramatic draped backs. For day, meanwhile, he had a kimono jacket, split A-line skirt, and nipped-waist jacket made from grid-checked knit wool—a look that hinted at the line's emphasis on the graphic, another element that felt new.
Bold stripes and color-blocks underlined the effect. It was nice to see Olowu expanding his idiom. But what kept this collection from feeling like a total departure—beyond the inclusion of much Olowu-trademark mixed print—was its reliance on disciplined tailoring.
That's another signature and the thing that always makes his vibrant clothes look grown-up and sophisticated and not at all like a free-for-all. His fastidiousness about cut was evident, even when he worked with fuller shapes and with slack silhouettes like that of a lean, long silk shirtdress. If the Olowu clientele was getting a gentle push out on a limb here, it was also given a cushy safety net.