Of all things, an artwork depicting an insulation-pink Styrofoam La-Z-Boy sheathed in a gold-leafed plaster blanket inspired Cédric Charlier’s Spring collection. The piece, by the artist Todd Knopke (it’s called Felipe), was motivating because of its “colors, and the nonchalance of the sofa. . . . I wanted nonchalance and sophistication,” said the designer.
Charlier is now at a point where he’s offering a full men’s collection in addition to women’s—both were shown today at his Le Marais presentation, and both were quite good, especially in hitting that mellow-meets-mature sweet spot.
For the guys, the idea proved itself in an airy, sporty space, but one defined more by stylistic ease as opposed to anything directly athletic. There were two standout pixelated-knit jumpers, one a wallpaper of peonies, another a vignette of cherry blossoms. They set the tone for what Charlier called “overlap” between men’s and women’s—each was distinctly its own group but closely related. It was nice to see the sort of demasculinized, but still wearable, effect of a pinstriped and white-bibbed blouson or a bomber jacket with fragmented flowers sewn in detail across the back. There was even a hoodie that said “Boys” and “Girls,” but spliced and combined—this may have been a little too literal and less on the “sophisticated” side he was going for.
Womenswear was more straightforward—Charlier included a glittery pink plissé skirt, a cargo denim skirt, a très chic jumper ribboned in rivers of gold sequins (stripes are his thing), and a lot of easy, breezy cotton pieces, too. Most everything had salable appeal, and, while fans will recognize Charlier’s hand, our only note is that, together, these collections lacked slightly in definition. A bit more risk-taking in terms of visual ownership—more brio, really—might help to attract new eyes and wallets.
