Yahoo Finance Dries Van Noten presents a celebratory collection in Paris
Dries Van Noten sold a majority stake in his company to Puig last week, netting him an undisclosed but hefty amount and giving up control of one of the last independent fashion brands. A fiercely, fiercely independent one; since he began in 1986 Van Noten has spun to the rhythm of his own yarn, regardless of the winds of fashion in his own nuanced, bohemian, richly evocative way. So there was chatter at his Paris men’s show as to whether this might be a farewell. We sincerely hope it isn’t, but there was something celebratory about the collection; let’s hope it’s for that windfall and not to signal the finale to 32 years of genius work.
The designer sent the audience on a trippy, hippy dance through a sort of Indian carpet stall in the 1970s as seen by Wes Anderson, with swirling 70s prints in rainbow stripes (during Pride month) grim shades of blue fading to green and pink into sunset shades. There were echoes of Wild Wild Country, the Netflix documentary about the Rajneesh cult, in the tangerines, fuschias and scarlets that were their signature hue. And there’s nothing if not a cult around Dries Van Noten, although this one - in their patterned trousers and silky bombers - is slightly less threatening (although equally militant about their Great Leader).
There were plastic fantastic primary shades macs, and casual worker’s jackets, as well as giant hand prints on sweaters. Was this a final comment about the Dries Van Noten fingerprint, the identity, that he’s steadfastly maintained throughout his career? There was a sense of optimism in the loose forms and vibrant patterns, so perhaps there is a Dries Van Noten that lies ahead in a different form, but if not it was a bold jolt to the senses, totally outside the current verve for streetwear and urban utility and what other houses are obsessed with. Just as this quiet Belgian who loves gardening and built a career out of his very singular approach to fashion has always done it. Driesy does it.
