Y’all, the Prada Spring/Summer 2021 show has the fashion world tittering away, and with good reason. This was the first collection co-designed by Miuccia Prada with Raf Simons, of Dior, Calvin Klein, and Jil Sander fame: two titans of the industry making art together. A BFD indeed!
Of course, the peanut gallery wondered what the two would – or could – produce since the onset of the pandemic. Would it be romantic, like Simons at Dior? Intellectual, like Miuccia? Would their styles clash? How would they create together during stay-at-home orders? How would they present their collection?
Questions no more – the presentation is here, in video format, along with a 20-minute conversation between the two designers. The presentation in itself is genius, at least in my eyes, if not a bit unsettling (and as we know, often the best art is just that – unsettling).
The “runway” portion is about fifteen minutes long, followed by the designers’ conversation. If you’re short on time, just watch the first fifteen – it’s worth your while!
I’ve put together a short viewing guide with things to look for and questions to ask yourself as you watch! This will help you get the MOST out of the show and help you move beyond the initial judgements of “like/don’t like” and to the real meat of what’s going on here – because there’s a LOT.
The Prada Spring/Summer 2021 Show Viewing Guide
- Ask yourself why the models are “clutching” their coats. What kind of feelings and imagery does that evoke?
- The numbers on the screens refer to old-school couture shows where each model held the outfit number on the runway, so clients could easily note which pieces they’d want to purchase
- Attention to the emphasis on cameras, angles, and lenses – how has our relationship to video changed in the past year?
- Uniforms: everyone’s gabbing about this, so it’s worth mentioning. What kind of “uniform” are they proposing? What kind of person/lifestyle are they designing for?
- Look for a balance of utility and romance, intellect and playfullness
- How are they playing with your sense of time? Watch for some clips in suspended animation, others at an unrelenting pace. What does this say about the clothes? What does this say about our world right now?
- How does the show as a whole make you feel? Intrigued? Uneasy? Reassured?
A Wee Digestif: what do we think?
So, what are your thoughts? There’s a lot happening here – I think, as I said above, it’s truly a work of genius. That said, watching it made me feel very uneasy; the music triggered a physiological memory of what it was like coming in and out of consciousness after a traumatic brain injury. Yikes.
It also felt very institutional, very “big brother,” and the “man behind the curtain” reference – intentional or not – was not lost on me.
There is, however, a lot of subtlety here, which is where we see the product of two superlative artists coming together. The fact that a sense of playfullness, even romance (with those New Look-inspired silhouettes!!!) could exist in such a sterile environment is truly poignant.
The more I write about fashion, the more I think that a creator never produces a finite number of works – each viewer sees the work in a different way, buttressing and even changing the nature of the work with their experiences, their joys and losses, their place in the world, and a whole new work is created. All of that to say: this is just how I percieve it – how do you?
love,
Stig.
Cover photo: The New York Times
