SUMMER 2011

now that we have started to reconstruct society and to solidify the fundamentals of our markets, that we have harnessed our energy and focussed on what we know how to do best, we suddenly want to break free from fear and aggression. we want to open the sluice that has oppressed and contained us for so long to let the waters float freely and wildly. spilling out to discover new terrain and to carve out new matter; from the source of life to the stream of youth to the river of experience, of cascading creativity spilling into a sea of change, things get started, rapidly moving into new territory.

 like a river, fashion will break free with overwhelming fluidity becoming the principle of design for the near future. the fluency of the currents and waves and rapids and rivulets is reflected in the fluidity of folds and drapes and smocks and gathers, while froth and foam are rendered with fine pleating, layering and perforation. cascading waterfalls of frills and ruffles will give majestic form to romanticism. breaking waves of fine foamy jerseys will be layered to shield from a sudden summer breeze. the wilder currents of the ocean will stand for conceptual asymmetrical shapes while the stillness of the lake will ripple softly with crêpe and undulating yarns, reflective and minimal in a profound and deep dark blue.

–li edelkoort

water is our most precious element, feeding, forging and formulating our existence, acting as an agent ofexchange and economy, as a source of food and well-being, as a source of energy and an agent ofembellishment, as a temple for contemplation and a place for togetherness. this century will be aboutwater or will not be.

the slimy textures of algae, the translucent colours of jellyfish and the rubbery textures of squidare inspiring a new generation of high tech textiles with a humid character. these coated andpolished surfaces will counterbalance a flood wave of laundered qualities washed in the river anddried in the sun, of a shabby chic nature including all fibre for all occasions in all markets.

primitive and exotic textiles and patterns are studied in the great rainforest rivers and muddy estuaries ofthe southern hemisphere, delivering exciting motifs of tropical birds and artistic fishes, foreign jungleflowers, stained and spotted wild cats and exclusive reptile skins. monkeys will make fun of fashion.

thus these flushing fashions to come spell out a new society with rapids of radical new ideas, springs of resilient energies, meadows of mellow forms of well-being, rivulets of roman ideals and oceans of organic life forms. a world that is impatient to incarnate a truly new era possessed with a fugitive and escapist nature ready to embrace the second decade of the century, rushing towards the twenties like a roaring torrent.