"Compression of time and space" read the opening line of OAMC's SS19 show notes. Designer Luke Meier was thinking of data flows and urban spaces when he decided on this season's mission statement, and he brought the concept to life by quite literally compressing his work: it was cinched with drawcords and tightened with elastic, while crease-proof fabrics meant that it bounced right back.

OAMC isn't for amateurs and Meier doesn't deal in novelties: he trades in fabrics and advanced construction techniques. This season's materials included insulated silver foil and polyurethane-coated cotton, and its boxy silhouettes were both tailored and geometric. Spartan is an understatement (Meier's other gig is at minimalist icon Jil Sander, which he co-directs with his wife Lucie).

Meier hit the hardest with his splatter-effect pieces, particularly when they were combined with glossy work boots, tonal layers and metallic performance fabrics. The collection's most prominent graphics were blown up on the back of jackets, hidden from the runway cameras.

OAMC's show notes closed with a quote from American astronomer Carl Sagan: "Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known." With clothing this discreet, in an era of hype and hysteria, let's hope that there's customers out there curious enough to decipher OAMC and its collections.