Rue Chapon is a growing centre for amazing brands during Paris Fashion Week and the Queen of Avant-Garde herself had an exhibition space there.
Barbara I Gongini's Autumn Winter Collections 9 & 26 live from the clash between traditionally tailored garments and urban street wear, traversing the span with an Avant-Garde approach. The focus lies on basic items, seen as the canvas of creation where the wearer is encouraged to layer up with other designs. This season BARBARA I GONGINI is circling around organic forms and shapes, inspired by the Northern Hemisphere. This is visible through the tactility – from raw washed leather over stone washed garments and cold dyed items. Light cotton, raw linen, soft leather and longhaired wool play a significant role in the collection. Dusty tones, chalky-coated surfaces and ash tones break through the monochromatic colour palette, thus details and specific elements hit the eye instantly.
Barbara I Gongini usually has a show at Copenhagen Fashion Week, but this year she did something a little different. Collections 9 & 26 saw a visual collaboration within the esteemed forces of the Nordic Hemisphere, the fashion film MODULE MODULAR. The film visualises the transformation from primitive to futuristic.
I had the chance to view the exhibition while in Paris. Barbara I Gongini is a brand on the rise that stays true to their identity. In the images and video below, you can see these amazing creations that were crafted by up-cycling wire hangers and scraps of fabric and leather.
Within the film the collaborators extend the idea of the model using Barbara I Gongini AW17 designs as well as handcrafted items to dress up and down. The danish hairstylists Søren Bach and Joekim Davie Lenny Nielsen are creating looks, transforming from the pure and vulnerable skin to outrageous leather shapes and headpieces. It is a circular process of upgrading and downgrading the look in synergy with the style of the clothes. Danish filmmaker MIkkel Völcker captured the scenes on film while Janus á Argjahøvda gave it the final touch. The Icelandic musicians HUMAN WOMAN contribute an aural sound scape wandering between glimpses of shattered tribal music to techno tunes, while the danish choreographer Sara Gaardbo enriches the team with her ability to create movements that mirrors the inspirational transformation.
Together they form an interdisciplinary collective, which is based upon a lasting trust between each individual and their nordic origin. A new entity transcending the borders of imagination, levitating with international gravity that transforms through a deeper understanding of their shared dedication towards the arts.
Now here is the video in it's entirety.
Thank you to Henrik Ohlsten for the still shots from the video and Alice Berg for her shots from the exhibition.
