Since the start of the pandemic, Rick Owens has enjoyed the island of Lido in Italy, where he lives half the year, several times to present his collections. This season, he came back to this location once again to unveil his Spring/Summer 2022 collection, his fourth and last show here, marking the end of a Venetian mini-Owens-epoch before a long-awaited rebirth.
Called “FOGACHINE” – in reference to fog machines, which can be found in mini version attached to platform boots that create long vapor trails – the collection showed models walking along the beach of Lido Island, amid pounding dub music, hand-carried fog machines and water jets spewing huge arcs toward the shore.
On the twangily twisted techno soundtrack by Mochipet, the silhouettes parade and the color palette of the looks is much softer than usual, with mainly off-white pieces, punctuated with black and a few touches of orange. The looks were as usual sassy, with bodysuits and transparent shirts, blazers with cut sleeves and pagoda shoulders, baggy pants, ripped mesh tops, visor-like sunglasses, foggily diaphanous nylon hoodies, platform shoes, but also a rooster feather jacket made by Maison February, Joséphine Baker’s Parisian plumassier.
A way for the designer to show a collection turned towards optimism, and towards “hedonism” according to his words.
“This collection is about embracing hedonism because, of course, I had the chance to embrace all the hedonism I wanted to. I wouldn’t want this generation not to have that, but I feel like I want to be soft: I want people to take care of themselves, and not go too far, and consider responsibility. We can be hedonistic and indulge, but let’s try to keep it soft and nice”, Owens said.
