F/W 16 Arrivals

[voltbird]

However, his more recent work (I would personally say from Crust to Moody) seems to be more focused on the architectural aspect of the garments instead of the..."grunginess"?...of the fabrics used. Island had some serious color-blocking as well, but the designs didn't include a plaid worker jacket. Maybe I am being melancholic about it.

It is definitely something that has to do more with my personal taste.

Completely understood. And look: I will be the first to admit that I prefer the work he did between 2003 and 2009. I'm a Trucker/Moog/Dustulator fangirl at heart. There is little here that I myself am interested in buying. But it feels like the Rick discussion threads for recent seasons have become an echo chamber of, "I myself would not wear this." A valid sentiment on its own, and one I agree with, but perhaps less valuable to the discussion if we're hung up on it to the point of it clouding our judgment.

In this same recent Interview piece that I see referenced by scanner, I have read the following, straight from the mouth of the man himself:

OWENS: Yeah. I am not really engaged in the fashion world where advertising and a lot of editorial is essential. I suppose I could have engaged more personally, but I just never did. It kind of worked out for the best because any kind of success doesn't really hinge on me being that visible. Like, I don't have to actually be there when a store opens. I don't have to present my collections to editors and buyers and explain it to anybody, so that's kind of great. It either engages you or it doesn't. There's nothing I can argue that is going to convince anybody even more.

WALLACE: Well, that breeds a very passionate following. I don't think that people sip Rick Owens—do you know what I mean?

OWENS: I think when you create a niche like that, it becomes so specific that people identify with it. People who like it, really like it, and people who don't like it, really hate it. It's polarizing in that way.

MONTANA: I don't need somebody to like it. If they don't like it, that's all.

OWENS: Yeah, and that's great, because it makes you very special to some people. It's kind of like making yourself indispensable. If you really focus and apply yourself, you create something that's ... Did I just call myself indispensable? That's kind of what I wanted to do.

He goes further to express that "wider availability" of a brand "dilutes [the message]" of the clothing, and the extent to which the so-called architecture of the garments themselves is a natural development of personal growth -- toward serenity, empathy, and alternative concepts of beauty. He's really laying himself bare, here, and it's weird to see that discussion of this:

OWENS: There are a couple of separate things, though, about expressing my personal idea of beauty, and also what could be considered beautiful. I like the idea of promoting alternative ideas of beauty. The fashion world can be very strict on the standards of beauty, and I like pushing it around a little bit. I like teasing those ideas a little bit, by promoting quieter kinds of beauty. But also I am thinking about beautiful aspirations and beautiful behavior, and I have found that now, with the fashion shows, I am able to express that a little bit more than I used to. So now I can introduce ideas of, like, "What if we lived in a world without shame?"—when I have guys with their dicks out. Or, with women carrying each other, it's taking a minute to appreciate those moments when someone is supporting somebody in need. That's a very stirring moment that we can all appreciate as a beautiful thing. That's been exciting to me, that I've been able to do that kind of thing, promote those ideas.

or this:

OWENS: They have been armor for sure. But armor is just a good-looking thing. There's also my theory about men in military uniforms: Military uniforms have just been perfected over centuries to make a man look dignified and heroic. And I think those are important qualities to everybody. Everybody would like to project a sense of strength and honor, so clothes as armor don't necessarily just have to mean defense; they can also mean something a little bit more elegant. But it's true, my clothes have become very sensual of late, and I don't really know what that means. I don't know if, 10 years from now, I'll be able to figure out exactly what the motivation was. Maybe it's me just softening with age. But as with the draped jackets, I thought I was softening, and then I wasn't. I was just still uptight. It just goes to show that there is always room for learning. I was surprised by how far away I was from that level of serenity that I am kind of hoping for at some point.

WALLACE: But you're so self-reflective. And I don't mean neurotic or anything, but I don't think you'll ever totally let yourself off the hook.

OWENS: You're right. I'll never let myself off the hook because I am also incredibly critical about everything. I am always going to be beating myself up and then forgiving myself afterwards for beating myself up, and then getting on myself for letting myself beat myself up ... I'm very busy. Very, very busy.

takes a backseat to talk of whether he's taking cues from other names we'd prefer to sneer at. Like, there is more plainly stated here for dissection than any kind of conjecture on how he's suddenly making clothes for an audience that isn't nearly as niche as it once was.

We are all aware that Rick is a selfish designer who percolates in a hermetic chamber of his own personal vision, and emerges on a semi-annual basis to display the fruits of the experience. What we love is incidental! And though he progresses along a newer, more alien trajectory with his shapes, silhouettes, and colors, made even more alien by the fact that we're no longer salivating by the racks each season as we used to, the basic inspirational DNA of his work is the same as it always has been; it is only revisited in ways that we, individually, would not consume.

Nothing he has explicitly said -- or, in my opinion, actually produced -- suggests Rick is catering to a wider audience, or taking new hints from Hedi Slimane, or what have you. Yes, Rick is aggressively hyped, and the nature of that hype is identical to the kind that drives the booming (and, I predict, eventually busting) business behind types like Demna or Gosha. But what cemented his legacy -- what brought us all on board as an enduring fanbase, not to be confused with the ebb and flow of the hype-machine -- is the same quality that allows him to bypass hype's whims still benefiting from its machinations: his single-minded, unrelenting focus on Rick's universe. It's his world, we just mess around in it. And up until now, we've all been stoked.

Let's not confuse his growth as an artist with our personal distaste. I'd love to discuss the former in detail, even if the evaluation is ultimately negative, as opposed to why I wouldn't want to wear a pair of baggy silk trousers.

[Faust]

Jesus, I did not realize those oversized Raf Simons sweaters are nearly $2.5k!!

[scanner]

Voltbird, What I meant by catering to a wider audience or following trends, doesn't mean that I think he's choosing profit and mainstream acceptance over his vision, rather, he understands and knows how and when to adapt to the volatility of the current fashion industry. I could be completely off the mark here but If this weren't the case, I don't think there would be the newly introduced 'Forever' collection or (which is what I was originally referring to, in his non-runway Mens collections) the sudden introduction of shorter tee's, even slimmer jeans, and even sneakers. I mean, his Walrus GeoThrashers basically look like Low Top Pumas, which i'm totally ok with. I don't think this clashes or interferes with his vision at all either, I think, if anything he's showing that he can be a visionary as well as a realist - He can have his cake and eat it too. And we are forgetting one massive component, at the end of the day he is the face of not only his brand, but a business and has partners as well as associates like Adidas that might influence his decision tointroduce certain things that appeal to them as well (for example, Michele and her boxing trainers).

[Fuuma]

Vetements sweatshirts have gone from $750 to $1,050 in one season. Only Paul Harnden can rival that.

Two Oligarchs meet in a boardroom and they're wearing the same tie.

-Boris: Nice tie, where did you buy it?
-Vladimir: At the store down the street, I paid $750 for it.
-Boris: You're stupid, you could have gone two streets down and paid $1050!

[negroygris]

Jesus, I did not realize those oversized Raf Simons sweaters are nearly $2.5k!!

May I ask what are they made of? Why do they retail so high and what makes them so special?

[Faust]

May I ask what are they made of? Why do they retail so high and what makes them so special?

You are asking the wrong person.

[gustavobradley]

May I ask what are they made of? Why do they retail so high and what makes them so special?

The only one I've seen in person was a non-distressed cardigan, but it was made of what felt like just wool (might have been an alpaca blend, I'll check more closely next time). Construction was super nice (stitching was very sturdy looking, etc.) but aside from that, it's just a gigantic sweater that says Raf Simons on the tag

[Faust]

This is so gorgeous! Could be a sleeper hit for Rick this season.

[negroygris]

Faust Mohair, Wool and Nylon perfect for the winter, its definitely a top piece. I checked the ssense buy and i gotto say the black hooded peacoat is beautiful as well. The footwear is also very strong this season IMO.

[voltbird]

Voltbird, What I meant by catering to a wider audience or following trends, doesn't mean that I think he's choosing profit and mainstream acceptance over his vision, rather, he understands and knows how and when to adapt to the volatility of the current fashion industry. I could be completely off the mark here but If this weren't the case, I don't think there would be the newly introduced 'Forever' collection or (which is what I was originally referring to, in his non-runway Mens collections) the sudden introduction of shorter tee's, even slimmer jeans, and even sneakers. I mean, his Walrus GeoThrashers basically look like Low Top Pumas, which i'm totally ok with. I don't think this clashes or interferes with his vision at all either, I think, if anything he's showing that he can be a visionary as well as a realist - He can have his cake and eat it too. And we are forgetting one massive component, at the end of the day he is the face of not only his brand, but a business and has partners as well as associates like Adidas that might influence his decision tointroduce certain things that appeal to them as well (for example, Michele and her boxing trainers).

Fair enough, I just don't want a comprehensive perspective on his work (and, frankly, the man's temperament) tunnel visioned out of the discussion by footwear collabs or occasional trendy indulgences, which are as much a gleeful exercise in self-awareness (of himself, his audience, of the regard in which it holds him, the industry's machinations, of his own place within it) as shrewd practice. He is still doing precisely what he wants, self-obsessively, probably with tongue lodged firmly in cheek for that which might wrinkle your average SZ denizen's nose and maybe with a deliberate incendiary bent. I am not convinced, at this point in his career, that he feels beholden to "realism" insofar as you mean, like, the current plague of major league corporate partnerships and celebrity licensing that has become standard operating procedure for any brand that hopes to stay relevant and out of the red. This is sick, and indeed systemic, but I think he has -- for the time being, at least -- escaped the trappings of fashion "cog." He has a fiercely loyal customer base and a thriving, expanding enterprise. If his latest design trajectory is an adaptation to volatility, it's a volatility he's not immediately subject to, nor something that is evident to me in a collection like Walrus. I can't rule out that it's a pre-emptive strategy, of course, but I doubt it.

[Faust]

Has anyone bought these? It's the only thing from Rick I'm considering this season.

[lowrey]

tried them on, I think they are very cool. fabric is heavier than I thought, its like thick denim, but still kind of soft.

[mrbeuys]

They remind me a bit of the 04 Citroen pants which I sold for $ 90.
But I think this season's are tooooooo tight.

[sunny]

yup. Love the pants. Material is relatively heavy yet soft and stretchy. Very skinny, size up. The details look great. Felt Too warm in summer/ autumn in my place.