For any designer, one of the hardest tricks to pull off is to make an old house new again—all the more so if the founder is still very present in fashion’s collective memory. While Mugler is best remembered for couture, it falls to the brand’s current designer, David Koma, to burnish its relevance in ready-to-wear.
Three years into the job, the designer has sussed out what could prove a winning recipe, by stepping away from dresses in favor of a return to chic tailoring. “One of the questions I always ask myself is, ‘How many jackets does anyone want to buy?’ ” he mused. “Creating a beautiful jacket is always a challenge, but I love a challenge and our heritage makes it a little easier.”
Taking as a springboard the work of one of his favorite artists, the Art Deco–era painter Tamara de Lempicka, Koma decided to focus on day-to-evening options, notably the pantsuit. “Lempicka conveys a very graphic feminine masculinity,” he noted. Filtered through the Mugler lens, that translates into powerful shoulders, sleek lines, and enough of what Koma calls “shadowing” to soften the whole effect.
Though some of the season’s offerings nod to Mugler’s signature wasp waist, memorably in one belted, bottle green leather jacket, Koma also set forth relaxed hourglass shapes on plane-shouldered jackets paired with tapered, ankle-length trousers or controlled flares. Other stalwarts included pinstripes (on the bias or sequined) and the house’s perennial best seller, the black jumpsuit. The feminine side came through in contrasting textures, colors, and shine, for example, in yellow crushed velvet pants, plissé separates, asymmetrical tops, and or a lily print. The patent-embossed tweed overcoat would do Helmut Newton proud—with a suit, over jeans, or with nothing at all.
