Undercover Fall/Winter 2014: Paris Fashion Week

Inside Salle Wagram’s ballroom near the Arc de Triomphe, we sat amongst red-eyed royalty in Jun Takahashi’s designs for the Undercover Fall/Winter 2014 collection. Models seemed immobile as they glided at an exaggeratedly somber pace, illuminated by the red light of chandeliers (and blood-red contact lenses), scored by a Björk ballad. Full of his signature slashes and sashes, the looks felt freshly improvised, like they had just landed on the models, and yet there was also something mummified about this riff on a royal pageant. Each look was densely collaged and adorned, toying with the aesthetic of monarchy. Except for the few looks that were accompanied by headwraps, crown headpieces topped off outfits with billowy sleeves and tartan touches. Scarves with enlarged cobweb motifs emerged from blazers, as if the blazers themselves had bled scarves. Hefty capes with images of Persian rugs followed, as did trench coats made out of quilted fabric and leather; finally, sweeping gown-like toile ensembles, with fox fur (on stilettos, too) and turbans that would make even the Queen of Sheba jealous. As the show ended, the sanguine undertone forced itself into the forefront as the ceiling poured vibrant red confetti, an expression of Takahashi’s own kind of macabre kitsch.

Photos by Karl Hab | E-MAIL US to be notified once the Fall/Winter 2014 collection hits OC!