Walter Van Beirendonck presents the Spring/Summer 2020 collection in Paris. Under the title “Witblitz” – meaning white lightning – Van Beirendonck says he imagines traveling to celestial planets and faraway places to return and present a foreign, otherworldly vision for Spring/Summer 2020. Elements like undulating shapes, polka dots, vibrant colors, bizarre hairstyles and tight pants combine to take the collection out of any one cultural context and into a foreign vision.
The effect is one of diversity and peculiarity – something unexpected, alien, and an escape from the routine drum beat of menswear. Plastics and vinyls are molded into strange and imaginative shapes while double layered t-shirts create optical illusions of three dimensions when given a bit of movement. The polka dot motif is cleverly placed on skin tight spandex, shirts and pants. Further makeup and hair applications of dots and stripes create trompe-l’œil illusions on the models’ faces while alien figurines adorn t-shirts and fun accessories. Graphics that recall Lucha libra wrestling walk on pants and full body suits, complete with masks.
An explosion of color, form, and imagination, “Witblitz” asks an interesting question with an important message: what can we discover when we celebrate an unknown culture?
Images courtesy of Walter Van Beirendonck. Exclusive backstage images: Benoit Auguste for RAIN Magazine.
