After it launched last year with its Spring/Summer 2022 collection, VTMNTS recently presented its first Paris Fashion Week show. The show was hosted at a closed down Monoprix supermarket, chosen to show that, “with every ending comes a new beginning,” while the collection itself built on the label’s genderless ethos and its combination of modern technologies with traditional craftsmanship.
This theme was developed through the use of tailoring, which was accompanied by elevated shoulders and “frame” piping details, and worn alongside pants featuring hidden zips, that can transform the whole silhouette when opened. Elsewhere, outerwear comes constructed in a coated canvas traditionally used for luxury bags, before being finished with VTMNTS’ signature barcode monogram, while boiled wool coats and denim pieces are painted with liquid silver, and leather jackets feature double-embroidery by hand, referencing an artisanal technique more often used for sportscar interiors.
A key innovation for the collection comes through the use of specially-developed fabrics that feature adaptive technologies. These materials give the collection a unique construction, that can change and evolve along with changes to the wearer’s body, thus making ready-to-wear items fit like custom pieces.
The show ended with a printed leather carcoat, sporting a puzzle motif and a picture of a blue sky. This item was a reference to a small blue sky jigsaw puzzle, the first toy Guram Gvasalia was given by his parents after they fled war-torn Georgia and settled in Germany. “Blue sky as a beacon of hope,” as the shownotes explain.
Unveiling the collection, Gvasalia said:
“VTMNTS stands for gender equality. Gender is such an important subject. Fashion is about identity, it is about expressing who you truly are on the inside. “Menswear” and “womenswear” terms are so outdated and old-fashioned, and not really represent how the world is developing and transforming into a better place for all of us, who do not particularly want to identify as male or female stereotypes. We are all so much more than what we are told to believe we are!
VETEMENTS is built on deconstruction and twisting patterns to redefine the whole nature of a garment. We cut pieces apart and sew them differently back together. VTMNTS is built on garment construction using the most advance technologies mixed up with sartorial tailoring tricks invented centuries ago. Both brands exist in one Universe, you can wear VETEMENTS or be a VTMNTS kind of person, or you can wear pieces from both brands to create entirely new narrative.”
For more from Paris Fashion Week, take a look at BOTTER’s “Caribbean Couture” collection.