Bernhard Willhelm’s style can be hard to describe on paper, but the people who get it come back for more season after season.
This season, the designer brought messages to his signature kimonos and T-shirts that included owls (wisdom, intelligence); wizards; leaping panthers; “sexy men”; and ominous phrases like This is all very dangerous, which is the title of this collection, as well.
There’s also a whimsical fox-like creature named Nubis running throughout, keeping company, for example, with a naive rendering of a monk on a long smock with a drawstring neckline. Some hoods sport fox ears. New fabric treatments included spray-paint finishes on T-shirts and coats. A light blue coat with a honeycomb-like weave, done in overdyed, sand-washed organic cotton, and a corduroy-ish velvet dress speak to the designer’s interest in exploring treatments. Boxy sweaters sported graphic Peruvian motifs.
In the early hours of the morning back in Los Angeles, where he’s been living for the past three years, Willhelm spoke of his affection for martial arts, Zen Buddhism, and the interconnectedness of things. That his clothes are produced in Japan has something to do with that line of thought. So does his life in L.A., where the designer feels he can take more time.
“The spiritual element of the collection is speaking about wisdom and seeing in the night (the owl), and the panther is about breakthrough, which is a popular Chinese symbol,” he pointed out. “I didn’t want to be new-new; I wanted to sort of create a Zen uniform. I’m very interested in creating with constants. It’s a little bit like going back to school. What I need now is a calming feeling.” God knows he’s not alone in that.
