FOR THE autumn-winter Alaïa collection, Pieter Mulier showcases time as a material notion instead of an abstract concept, teaching us about its signs, signifiers and its observations through fashion. Making time.
Giving time, taking time, less time, timeless. The malleable approach to time has always been an integral motif within the House of Alaïa, as they embrace its codes and restrictions in everything they do. The time taken and the care given towards their craft resembles the devotion they have to this brand, and a strive for effortless perfection.
By taking their time, the House can afford to trial how the human figure itself can be fashioned, manipulated, and transformed through their clothes as tailored silhouettes reinforce the shape of the body and in turn empowering the wearer.
Seams follow the form of the body and the life of these clothes, casting them into a timeless realm that charts their evolution and refinement, valuing their time. Each piece echos an archived design to show how another time can be related to another life today.
Buttons are uniquely central to this collection as they represent our dressing ritual and the idea that it is time to change. From one garment to another, we unbutton and refasten into a new life, like a promise to the future.
Throughout the show, we see a series of tactile fabrics such as wool flannel, ostrich, cotton linen, transparent and lacquered knits, leather, and latex, representing a feeling of sensuality. Demanding the viewer to take a closer look, even if only for a minute.
The showcase itself is set on a bridge as figures cross in perpetual motion, marching against an eternal human backdrop of an ever-ticking clock. The ticks represent the sound of time passing and set a pace for the show, keeping everyone in order like the rhythm of life.
by Alicia Tomkinson