Ryan Lobo and Ramon Martin like to reference female artists in their collections for Tome. This season, the duo looked to the late Austrian painter Maria Lassnig, whose work has been shown in recent retrospectives at the MoMa PS1 in New York and the Tate Liverpool in England. She’s known for her self-portraits rendered with vibrant colors and amorphous shapes and lines.
“It was wonderful to look at an artist who really explored her technique over and over again,” Lobo said of Lassnig’s 70-year career. “As designers, you start to approach fashion like that as well: Who are we, what do we do best, what are we known for?”
Drawing from Lassnig’s use of primary colors and pastels, Lobo and Martin placed an emphasis on versatile knitwear for pre-fall, homing in on what they felt were essential wardrobe pieces. That meant a series of slinky ribbed sweaters and dresses with artful color-blocked stripes and fluid jersey separates meant to be draped, layered and tied at the waist. Paired with any of the lineup’s languid wide-legged trousers, the silhouettes took on an effortless Seventies vibe. “You’ll see a lot of things closer to the body,” Martin noted, “but we’re saying it’s body-conscious without being ‘bodycon.’ It’s not tough or constrictive. It’s easy, soft.”
Striped cotton shirting and flirty ruffled blouses rounded out the offering of easy-does-it chic. Also of note — on the heels of Tome’s fifth anniversary — is the label’s new line of “Classics,” which will be offered during pre-collection seasons exclusively on its e-commerce site, comprising customer favorites and the designers’ top picks.
