WOOF!! That’s normally footie (or soccer to the Americans) speak to accompany a stonkingly good goal. In this case, it was my reaction to Anthony Vaccarello‘s debut campaign for his A/W 14-5 collection, shot by Inez and Vinoodh and starring Anja Rubik and a separate entity known as Anja Rubik’s never ending legs. It’s an ace combination all round as Vaccarello chose to kick off his campaign cycle with a bold stroke, in homage to the key inspiration of the A/W 14-5 – the vibrantly energetic illustrations of Tony Viramontes. Long time Style Bubble readers will know that Vaccarello and I go way back. Way back to ye olde blog days. And since then, I have slowly resigned myself to being a silent cheerleader given that he now has far more powerful and effective champions of his work (Anja Rubik’s legs for one…).
That said, I was happy to be punched in the face with that emboldened red font. It’s the sort of font that says Vaccarello has truly arrived and his future ascent looks assured as he has a (what I’m told) will be an exciting collection for Versus Versace still to come later in the year. And so I thought I’d take this opportunity to indulge in all things Viramontes and Vaccarello – bold brush strokes matched up by bold body draping in leather, chainmail and red patent. It’s tickling my secret desire to channel the chicks in that Robert Palmer video. It seems appropriate that Viramontes is having a bit of a moment as his assertive illustration style and fast-paced paint strokes key into the way we see fashion today – scrolling through images on the screen with eyes gathering an impression of a silhouette rather than taking in all the subtle details.
Vaccarello has long been going into Viramontes-esque impressionistic territory as he has always sought to drape fabric on the body and make it stay in place in an unexpected manner. For A/W 14-5, your immediate take-away is the oversized jacket worn with the shortest of minis – an upscale version of the way you might have borrowed a boy’s jacket at the end of a heavy night of clubbing or shrugged on a coat to hide the hemlines from disapproving parentals. High chunky polonecks conceal in tandem with the revealing skirts. Viramontes’ red and black illustrations paid dividends in the flashes of red patent and metal grommets shaped to look like an abstracted version of a leopard print. Vaccarello is shy of colour but it’s hugely effective when used in small doses against all of his trademark textures of black. As always, Vaccarello is a fastenings nut – taking the time to source the right ways to keep his body conscious draping in its correct position. This time he uses exaggerated Mod-esque button straps to run up a thigh-slit black satin dress and zippers on skirts. He also returns to the ruffle that graced his first standalone collection which was showcased in the windows of Maria Luisa. It’s minimised now but mimics the flourishing pen strokes of Viramontes and is used to introduce Vaccarello’s beloved metal chainmail. Hard. Soft. Covered. Exposed. Sexy. Cerebral. These are the contrasts that Vaccarello traverses to and fro. They’re the fine lines that intrigue and pique the likes of covered-up, distinctly unsexy me. There’s an allure that you definitely want to succumb to. One day…
SOURCE: Style Bubble – Read entire story here.