On heels so soaring that the average height of these looks was within a whisper of six and a half feet, this Ann Demeulemeester collection trod pointedly around themes of personal expression, recreational repression, and commercial concession. The topstitched paneled black tailoring of which the facades veered from biker to tuxedo, the painstakingly ruched black leather pants, and the backless black tank tops–slash-waistcoats with a melee of obi-belt knotting at the navel were all no-brainer ticks on a buyer’s list. The Demeulemeester codes factor in waft and sheerness, so more ticks—although perhaps applied a touch less firmly—at the lightly fitted, transparent racer-back silk dresses, sometimes metallically agleam, and long jackets in softly acid, blurrily animal greens and yellows.
Artistic director Sebastien Meunier said the collection was titled Rising and that his starting point was the angular unreality of Alberto Giacometti, then added: “It is about the extreme elegance of women; how tall, how bright, how mysterious they can be. I pushed them in a super-elegant, kinky, sadomasochist form.” This explained the choker-topped harnesses that were sometimes effective—who knew a white harness under black suiting complemented by white sunglasses could be an uncreepily powerful accessory arsenal? Yet S&M motifs speak of subjugation—albeit consensual—as well as power and so seem only queasily reconcilable with the runway. The oily chartreuse feathering on sleeves and coral-like clusters of quills were here thanks to Meunier’s collaboration on this collection with artist Kate MccGwire. The quilled pieces were simultaneously beautiful and sad, organic reductions into abstraction for the sake of it. This lineup lacked the uplift that Meunier’s last menswear outing seemed to augur. Yet for those who enjoy pain, this was not a pleasure to watch—because it was fine.
