A Kiko Kostadinov collection asks a lot of you as a viewer and wearer. You can’t only be an expert in fashion’s past and present—though it certainly helps—you must also be curious about how clothing can portray human complexity. In this, Kostadinov operates quite like Miuccia Prada, another designer-philosopher who asks big questions about being alive while making sure you are perfectly dressed for whatever life you want to lead.
The question Kostadinov is taking on for fall 2021 is certainly his biggest one yet: how to be alive, and happy, in a totally fucked-up year. On a video call from his expansive new studio, he explains this season as a step beyond spring 2021, which he brands as “a pandemic collection,” and delves into the books he’s been reading: Patience Gray’s 1986 cooking memoir Honey From a Weed, which tracks her hot-blooded journeys through the Mediterranean. A Mark Fisher lecture led him to the 1977 Christopher Priest dystopian sci-fi novel A Dream of Wessex. The juxtaposition of those worlds, sizzling summer clay against the cold, stony British sea, struck up something in the designer. He spoke of life having phases, sometimes wishing for nothing but a far-off garden, other days thriving in the slickness and speed of the city. Rather than offer an either-or solution to the push-pull of human desires for rest and exhilaration, he wanted to offer both.
So his fall 2021 collection is a collage of ideas that represent the sea, the city, the future, and the past contrasted against each other. Sometimes the references are obvious. For the countryside: a glitchy floral print and an apron that ties around the leg. For the sci-fi city: a slick jumpsuit, a knee-high boot. But rather than pick it apart, the collection is best read all together: the chaos of modern life. A knit-sleeve blazer and a sweater vest and a tomato red coat and a lace-up leg trouser, all born from a naive sense of play. Kostadinov is a great tailor, and the collection’s many new shapes, like a darted sleeve inspired by the drape of a pant leg, only strengthen the mash-up effect of the looks.
In a fit of madness or genius (are they really that different?), Kostadinov styled the garments 90 different ways, 30 of which are shown here. The point being: This is not your car coat or vacation coat, an office trouser or a party pant, your date night sweater or your casual Friday uniform. You don’t have to follow anyone’s fashion rules but your own, and even then, opposing urges can work together in harmony. It’s an idea that has done wonders for this collection—and could do more for the world at large too.
