Luke Meier designs what is on his mind. And what’s been on his mind lately is “recent ancient history.” Anyone who loves vinyls, or is still hanging onto VCR and cassette tapes, will immediately relate.
Not that he is heavy-handed about it—quite the contrary. One case in point is a compelling layered look featuring watercolor green silk organza printed with a vintage botanical plate and a black-and-white photo of a polar bear. Meier explained that it was made using cyanotype, a blueprint-like process that produces a ghostly effect. “It’s dystopian, but that’s really what’s on everyone’s mind,” he explained matter-of-factly.
“We’re in a moment of momentous change. If we can manage to be positive in this moment, you can see where the turning points are.” So he’s holding onto optimism while also taking a cue from Robert Rauschenberg. The theme of collage and assemblage returned on what the designer calls “a suit without a jacket”: a tailored shirt with a black-and-white flower and straight, fluid trousers with a zip opening at the hem.
Meier likes taking noble materials and loosening them up a bit. Sharp coats and jackets had off-center zippers instead of buttons. A shirt in diagonal jacquard was, he said, a reference to recent-ancient history we no longer even consider: TV static.
As for accessories, a new entry in an ongoing collaboration with Adidas combined transparency and suede, while a miniature crossbody bag was designed to be worn alone or with add-ons. In his show notes, the designer quoted Rauschenberg: “There is no reason not to consider the world as one gigantic painting.” Which is Meier’s way of saying, it’s up to the creatives, in any domain, to try and make things better by giving people something to be excited about.
