Spring Summer 2017 was Consuela Castiglioni’s last collection for the Italian fashion house, but that didn’t mean she played it safe. And the mini collection created alongside Dutch artist Ruth Van Beek, now available in the brand’s Paragon and Hilton Hotel stores, still pushes boundaries in a quiet, thoughtful manner.
There’s the art connection: Van Beek is an internationally recognised “re-creator” who uses images of old photo books taken from her personal archive and turns them into new and intriguing works simply by folding, cutting or adding pieces of paper. Her ingenuous yet provocative approach has earned her features in top magazines and spots in London, San Francisco and Antwerp art galleries.
Then there’s the way Van Beek’s organic treatment has been replicated in the collection. Her illustrations, which are printed on PVC shopping bags and tees ($530 each), are juxtaposed against the colourful, whimsical prints from the brand’s S/S ’17 collection, lending a raw, unfinished air to the pieces.
Below, check out the buys all arty dreamer types would want to score, stat: