https://youtu.be/Re2RieqhWsg

After taking a trip to Egypt and gaining comfort from the remoteness of its history, Rick Owens creates his Spring/Summer 2023 Menswear line after the country. With so much of the world being in disarray, Owens felt a sense of pettiness towards his concerns and the global discomfort he was experiencing in the face of the timelessness of Egypt. For the new line, named Edfu after the Egyptian temple, Owens channels his newfound peace into the new garments.

Using a majority of neutral colors, such as black, grey, and cream, Owens creates a monotone mood. Airy fabrics, such as cotton, silk chiffon, and sheer viscose, create a certain lightness that is felt in the way each garment moves. It’s like Owens tries to emulate the lightness he felt while lying on the sand in Egypt into clothing. Light ripstop nylon is paired with Dyneema, a patented fiber assumed to be the strongest in the world, to create a dichotomy between the peace and undeniable weight of daily life.

Stepping away from his traditional style, Owens uses minimal hardware to stick to the quiet, somber mood of the overall collection. A perfect combination of simplicity and exaggerated shapes make up each design. Flowing silk chiffon is manipulated into giant pointed shoulders on blazers and other coats, creating the perfect mix between avant-garde and everyday wear. He uses bright metallic colors, such as yellow and purple, to create the last few garments in the collection. Although traditionally known for his darker, more gothic silhouettes, these designs are a step in a new direction for the American designer. They bring a lightness to the darkness that Owens was feeling within himself.

However, the collection is not too far out of the box as dramatic oversized silhouettes take up much of the runway. Oversized suits add a sense of royalty, one that fits in line with the Egyptian theme. Layering half-cut skirts over shorts give a modern feel to the traditional dress of pharaohs. Bodysuits and shirts, staples of the brand, are bigger than ever. Certain styles come cinched, while others float far away from the body.

Tulle fly-proof robes with face-covering hoods take inspiration from the Egyptian sojourn. Coming in a range of colors, such as pink and black, these robes are the perfect way to add a bit of intrigue on top of any garment. For the runway show, they were worn over silk charmeuse shirts and draped perfectly over each crevice of the body. It’s an extravagant and abstract piece that merges Egyptian culture with Owens’ design principles.

Housed in the collection is a capsule Owens creates with Bonotto, a 4th generation textile mill founded in 1912. All fabrics included are woven on the company’s 1950s looms. Owens employs the help of Paradoxe, a Parisian label that specializes in artisanal denim, to collaborate on some of the denim pieces. The label unweaves used and washed denim to reapply the denim to the final garments.

The Spring/Summer 2023 Menswear collection brings a sense of luxury, peace, and style to the tumultuous world we live in. In a world filled with chaos, we can find solitude and comfort in the flowing and lightness of this new collection.