Dries Van Noten RTW Spring 2023

Bloom therapy.

This is what Dries Van Noten's Spring 2023 collection looked like as it unfolded from an all-black start to a softer middle, then exploded into a beautiful riot of florals that was a masterclass in mixing prints.

"I thought maybe we should start with black, really the essence, the base of what fashion and clothes are — pleats, volumes, structures, and then to introduce the same volumes going from stiff and hard versions to softer and more fluid versions. In fact, the shapes have remained the same, so it is the same lexicon,” the designer said during a preview.

The script, or rather the three scripts, could be a metaphor for our time, thought- it.

"On the one hand you want protection, but on the other you want to show your softer side. ”

So there was all-black cocooning outerwear and sharp stitching with buttons and jeweled pins, or a gorgeous sleeveless top cinched with hourglass precision over a festive decoration of a textured, layered pleated skirt like only van Noten can do.

Then he introduced more softness in a stripped-down way - an oversized seam in Sweetart hues with a relaxed '90s vibe. Swashbuckling, color-blocked slip dresses with matte sequin color fields, loose shirts with pleated bodices, draped jersey skirts and faded pastel baggy denim with fringe. /p>

But it was the flower festival that really lit up the room — and it's not amazing: van Noten has one of the best sense of color and print of any designer working today, a legacy stretching back a long way that he was happy to celebrate.

He also referenced the 90s here. It's an era he knows well, having launched his women's collection in 1993. But he's put his own spin on sheer second-skin diapers, fitted shirts, baby cardigans, cargo pants and dusters. who are back on the streets now.

He did this by skillfully mixing flowers of different scales and adding lots of textures with crushed and pleated fabrics, garlands of georgette, giant flowers and serpentine flounces. Handcrafted silk cord macrame tunics and overskirts, tubular glass jewelry, curved brass heels and ruffled shoes added touches of craftsmanship and whimsy.

What's 90s Dries missing?

"I've never been nostalgic, but now with everything that's happening in the world , I get a little scared about the future," he said. "But my whole team is made up of young people and they want to be optimistic, they don't want to hear that the past was so much better."

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The track must roll.