The hypebae–meets–vestal virgin sandals of twisted grosgrain, the Romanesque pteruges dresses of fabric strips, and the drapily layered off-the-shoulder goddess dresses near the end all suggested antiquity as an inspiration. However, Karl Templer insisted temple attire was not on his mind as he put together this Ports 1961 collection.
“It was all about touch, at first,” he said. “At the moment, touch is forbidden, and you see everything through a computer. So the idea was of something that embraces you, the idea that people can still find pleasure in dressing up for themselves personally.”
Many of these clothes did look a pleasure to wear, particularly down the sunny alfresco runway, with ample room for distancing, upon which Ports presented. Templer is still pursuing his modernized vision of classic bourgeois dressing, but here he offered a softened summer version that contained much metaphorical masking in double-layered garments, including suiting; the opening dresses with Aubrey Beardsley–esque illustrations of embrace; a double-hemmed blue silk naval buttoned trench; and more. Sweaters of twisted knit on opaque panels and two meshed dresses of laser-cut technical silk were emblematic of airiness and free movement. Tricksily articulated wrap dresses and knit dresses in overlapping fan-shaped panels were conversely suggestive of insulation and security. Sleeves on long washed-cotton shirtdresses as well as light trenches featured nearly-to-the-elbow buttons to allow the wearer to tweak her levels of arm exposure.
This collection could have done perhaps with a wider exploration of color—it was all off-whites played against inky navy or black, with only the odd sortie of red or yellow. But that’s just a quibble: At Ports, Templer is using his expert knowledge of the classical codes of womenswear as the foundation upon which to build an increasingly fresh yet sophisticated interpretation.
