For Spring/Summer 2023, Raf Simons ditched Paris. After delaying his runway show out of respect for the Queen's passing, Simons' latest co-ed collection was finally premiered in London, his first proper show in the British capital.
Hosted in the cavernous Printworks club, the Raf Simons SS23 collection is almost entirely disinterested in the Y2K trend that recently swept Paris Fashion Week. Instead, it's lit up by the neon hues of the 1980s.
You don't really get that vibe from the moody, metallic ambient soundscape that accompanied Simons' presentation but the clothes are there.
When Simons typically pulls from the '80s, he leans into the goths and the punks, the waifish psych rockers and the acid-drenched club kids. Spring/Summer 2023 leans mostly towards the latter, as the venue suggests.
Rave culture is referenced by eye-poppingly bright yellow and pink leggings, skin-tight bodysuits patterned with polka dots and worn beneath baggy tank tops.
A whiff of tailoring is set askew by raw hems and unconventional set-ups, like buttoned vests worn bare-chested and tucked into shorts. Stern-shouldered trench coats are tossed atop one-piece tunics.
Below, chunky boots and square-toed clogs are inspired by utilitarian workwear while loose pumps translate the '80s retrofuturism into angular heels.
It's easy-on, easy-off clothing, very much the stuff that an uber-cool, utterly unbothered '80s hipster would wear while raving out late or slouching around the mall.
Compared to other elements of contemporary Simons, SS23 is practically pared back.
There's no sign of his signature supersized sweaters, though the skeleton cuffs appeared occasionally.
However, SS23 does develop the genderless ethos that Simons put forth with other recent clothing collections, styling all models in the same style of clothing to demonstrate the fragility of gender norms.
Power suiting, neon leggings, knit onesies — they're for everyone, you know?
