On Sunday October 3rd, at their French headquarters in the heart of Paris, Paul Smith will host a presentation of the SS22 Women’s collection as part of the Federation de la Haute Couture et de la Mode fashion week.
Inspired by a feeling of space and light and a connection to the natural world, this collection brings the spirit of adventure and upbeat positivity.
An organic colour palette leads the transition from dawn to dusk, taking in warm orange sunrise hues through to brilliant sky blues and midnight blacks. Looks are tonally coordinated to give these glorious summer colours their moment to shine. Earth tones further root the collection in natural colours, while punctuation points of bright red and acid yellow cut through the palette.
Announcing the coming of Spring, sunflowers shoot up throughout the collection.With its innate positivity, the sunflower represents the mood of the collection. Reworked in various forms from foiled silver fabric with screen print repeat motif or woven into knitwear of citrus and sky blue.The photographic print is reimagined to read as a fabric texture with a bleached-out effect and pop art sunflowers appear hand-drawn on silk.
Elevating the central theme of lightness, fabrics have been chosen for their weight and the way they move through space.Transparent nylons are used to inject a sportswear edge.The silhouette plays with a boyish look that softens the collection, combined with a feminine delineation.There is a push and pull between loose and form-hugging.
Youthful details are found throughout. Jackets are reimagined, from a straight cropped fitted jacket with waist suppression, to a boxy zipped style, alternatives to traditional tailoring are explored. Checks, enlarged across knitwear or more traditionally on suiting styles acknowledge Paul Smith’s roots.Trousers are wide and give a sense of ease while shorts inject informality.
Stripes become a central theme, woven through the collection, from integrated detailing on trims such as the pocket of a traditional Mackintosh, or knitted on the collar of the fitted hero jacket, to an all-over knitwear dress.The stripe has been reenergised and reintegrated throughout the collection.