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Above billowing smoke and metal scaffolds, Rick Owens’ Autumn Winter 2023 womenswear collection explored formality through the preternatural lens of the American designer, inspired by ‘dignity in the face of aggression’ in reference to the war in Ukraine.

An austere geometry was present throughout the garments, in a quasi-minimalist approach that stripped back bells and whistles to reveal toroid forms and acute angles. Metallic pink and chartreuse constructions interrupted the sobering black in its many iterations, including black matte sequins, fringe and leather.

‘Luxor,’ named after the Egyptian city, expressed Rick Owens’ comprehension of beauty and brutality in the modern world whilst contemplating the grandeur of time exemplified by the Ancient Egyptian capital. Season after season, no one writes better about the collections than Rick Owens himself.

Below are his abridged show notes, alongside an exclusive portfolio of backstage imagery from the Rick Owens Autumn Winter 2023 presentation.

“IF VENICE, ITALY, HAS BEEN MY SUMMER RETREAT THEN LUXOR, EGYPT, HAS BECOME MY WINTER RETREAT. THE VASTNESS AND SCALE LINE UP WITH THE CECIL B. DEMILLE FANTASY OF EGYPT IN THE MOVIE THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (ART DIRECTED BY PAUL IRIBE!), WHICH I WATCH NIGHTLY WHILE WORKING OUT WITH BRUTALISMUS 3000 PUMPING THROUGH MY EARPHONES. MERGING REAL LIFE WITH FANTASY LIFE IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS. AND MEASURING THE INSIGNIFICANCE OF CONTEMPORARY TENSIONS AGAINST THAT IDEA OF ETERNITY COMFORTS ME.”

FOR THE WOMEN’S ‘LUXOR’ RUNWAY COLLECTION, WE ARE ONE YEAR INTO A WAR AND WITNESSING HOW INSPIRING DIGNITY IN THE FACE OF AGGRESSION CAN BE. TIMES LIKE THESE MIGHT CALL FOR A RESPECTFUL FORMALITY AND SOBRIETY WITH MOMENTS OF DELICACY AS REMINDERS OF WHAT IS AT RISK AND AT STAKE.

CLOTHES HAVE BEEN REDUCED TO THE SIMPLEST OF SHAPES. THERE’S A GENTLE BUT DEFIANT SWOOP TO THE SOFT JUMBO PADDED GARLANDS SLUNG OVER SHOULDERS OR THE SWINGING FOLDS OF A FLOWING CAPE. THESE ARE WORN OVER LENGTHS OF WOOL WRAPPED AT THE BOSOM AS ELONGATED BUSTIERS… OR WRAPPED AT THE HIP TO CREATE SKIRTS WITH SINUOUS TRAINS.

THE GARLANDS ARE SIMPLY DUVET-FILLED DONUTS OF VARYING SIZES EXECUTED IN AIRY AND LIGHTWEIGHT GRS (GLOBAL RECYCLED STANDARD) CERTIFIED RECYCLED POLYAMIDE OR ENZYME-FINISHED HEAVYWEIGHT PURE SILK CHARMEUSE, BOTH WOVEN IN COMO, ITALY. DONUTS AND COWLS ALSO COME IN LIGHTWEIGHT VEG TANNED AND WAXY LAMB SKINS FROM SOLOFRA OUTSIDE OF NAPOLI IN THE SOUTH OF ITALY. VEG TANNING MEANS ONLY VEGETAL AND NATURAL TANNINS ARE USED IN THE PROCESS OF TANNING AND PRESERVING THE LEATHER.

KNIT TUNICS AND DRESSES ARE SLASHED TO THE ARMPIT OR SLIT TO THE THIGH, SUGGESTING THE PHYSICALITY OF ACTION. LEGGINGS, STOCKINGS, AND BRIEFS ALLOW THEM TO BE WORN IN LAYERS COVERING OR REVEALING AT WILL. THEY ARE MADE FROM GRS (GLOBAL RECYCLED STANDARD) CERTIFIED RECYCLED CASHMERE. USING RECYCLED CASHMERE HELPS TO FIND A PURPOSE FOR RAW MATERIALS THAT WOULD OTHERWISE BE DISCARDED AND LESSEN THE DEPENDENCY ON VIRGIN FIBRES.

PEACHES, A QUEER PIONEER GOING ON TOUR TO COMMEMORATE 20 YEARS SINCE HER DEBUT ALBUM, THE TEACHES OF PEACHES, INTRODUCES A NEW SONG FOR THE SOUNDTRACK TITLED ‘SURVIVE’. THE GRAPHIC SEXUALITY IN HER INTELLIGENT LYRICS OVER TIGHT BRUTAL ELECTRONIC BEATS HELPED MAKE A GENERATION OF FEMINIST WOMEN SINGERS REVEL IN AS MUCH SEXUAL CONTROL AS HAD BEEN TRADITIONALLY HELD BY THEIR MALE MUSICAL COUNTERPARTS. SHE IS AN ESSENTIAL COUNTERBALANCE TO INTOLERANT ENERGY THAT IS STILL UNFORTUNATELY A FACT OF LIFE. AND HER SCRAPPY RESISTANCE AND FEROCITY IS AN EXAMPLE MORE RELEVANT THAN EVER. – Rick Owens