CHRISTIAN Wijnants has proved to be as much of a designer as an artist and his SS19 collection confirms this, as it effortlessly captures the essence of spring. He opened the show with a dynamic palette of solid colours – one of his great strengths – only to catapult the audience into a wonderful whirlwind of prints.
This season he didn’t shy away from vibrant colours but kept it light and breezy. Delicate knit trousers and sheer tops were balanced out by oversized men’s trench coats, creating an air of styled nonchalance. Less is more, but not when it comes to colour with blue, green, pink and orange ensembles coming down the runway. If it’s up to him, our next spring-cleaning will be done in in style, preferably wearing elbow-high yellow gloves.
The essence of the show, however, was a mélange of prints. Easing the audience into it with a striped suit, followed by checks on checks, leading up to a floral – a house classic – extravaganza. The Belgian designer piles on prints to the cusp of clashing yet gets away with it by playing with their proportions. In doing so, he transforms flowers to such an extent they start to resemble animal prints.
The combination of sheer and luxurious fabrics with an excess of prints was a much needed breath of fresh air.
by Lupe Baeyens