Cosima Gadient and Christa Bösch cooked up a sleek, body-hugging collection for spring, punctuated with the label’s signature deconstruction: winding seams, slightly twisted suit jackets, fraying and straps that trail off the clothing.
The pair evoked a science-fiction story involving a time-traveling train with misplaced passengers who, it turns out, were able to carve out a moment to enjoy themselves. It was a spirit the designers sought to capture in the clothing, which was polished and quite elegant underneath the chaotic, homespun feel.
“It’s about relaxing and having time with friends, when times stands still,” Gadient said. A friend of the pair, artist Georgia Gardner Gray, was inspired by the gingham prints that reminded her of picnics. So she drew tomatoes, which were printed onto mesh and lycra to make a swimsuit with a plunging neckline, and a shirt. It was a cheerful stroke amid the darker portions of the lineup.
Volumes were measured: Roomy sleeves on a dress added to its folksy feel while a dirndl-style skirt was a nod to the label’s Swiss roots. Pressed denim with metallic blue paint was made into a mesmerizing shorts and oversize jacket set. Outerwear was especially handsome and included a long, nylon trenchcoat, cinched with extra rings of gathering on the arms.
The last piece verged on nihilistic — fraying pieces of cloth wrapped tightly around the body, barely covering the necessary parts, and covered in streaks of messy, rubbery paint.
“We were playing around…in the end, we had one piece left [and thought] let’s make something more extreme for the runway,” Gadient said with a big smile.
