Following seasons driven by the creation of characters and archetypes, the Kiko Kostadinov collection for FW26 sees a return to the primary language of construction and material.
At its core is the question of what garments might look like when engage ith on their own terms, without an imagined end user or framing narrative.
Time has been spent developing new vocabulary and techniques, while also re-establishing the fundamentals of garments making. The collection builds through sequential variation, developing fundamental cuts and silhouettes that are gradually adapted and evolved. Simple ideas are repeated and refined, expanding a design language, building energy. A key influence is the work of Dom Hans van der Laan (Dutch b. 1904), an architect and Benedictine monk who created buildings, furniture and uniforms to a set of recurring mathematical formulas of his own devising.
Garments exist in intimate dialogue with one another. Silhouettes fluctuate between geometric and gently warped, fitted and voluminous. Precise, clean lines give way to intricate slits, cinches, darts and folds. Details such as diagonal cuts and rhombus gusset motifs appear and reappear in different forms. A recurring series of striped knit pieces and layered looks in lightweight crinkled nylon punctuate the collection, providing moments of patterning and expanded colour.
In the show venue, three sculptures by artist Oscar Tuazon (American b. 1975) fill the space. The minimal, architectural forms – each constructed from cardboard and paper tape – are arranged linearly and placed at angles to one another, echoing the rhythm and subtle variation throughout the collection.
Many pieces resist easy categorisation – blousons with softly curving shoulders, wide necklines and low cut arms, tops that sit somewhere between pullovers, shirts and jerseys, trousers that could also be skirts. Items with drapes, wraps and ties transform on the body and allow for multiple interpretations when worn. This is a collection that is happy being challenging, with an emphasis on producing clothes that actually bring something new to a wardrobe.
Throughout, material choices favour elevated simplicity over treatments and finishes. Colour palettes work through the subtle tonalities of blacks, blues, creams and greys, disrupted by occasional bursts of vermillion and sulphur.
There is an abundance of silk, cashmere and Loro Piana wool, with a sense of generosity and playfulness in their application. The label’s made in Japan suiting expands into a series of blazers, trousers and overcoats all rendered in black wool to further foreground the subtle details of cut and proportion.
Embellishments such as topstitching, piping, tapes and trims are kept to a minimum, further emphasising the legibility of garments. There are no visible zippers. Buttons are hidden behind plackets or matched with fabric to avoid visual interruption. Rather than allow them to disrupt silhouettes, accessories are replaced by a series of coloured wig bands by Tomihiro Kono, which echo the geometric motifs of the collection.
Footwear follows a similar internal logic, working and reworking variations on core silhouettes. A new slip-on appears in two styles, one with a padded leather upper, the other with an extended heel that comes both lined and unlined in black shearling wool, while a series of slim profile leather lace-ups further adapt and refine the Sargo silhouette. This season also sees the debut of a new collaboration with Crocs, featuring architectural lines and a utilitarian directness crafted with minimal topstitching, no eyelets and the brand’s signature heel tab integrated into the body of the shoe.
CREDITS
PRODUCTION: Experiential/H.
CASTING: Henry Thomas at Bryant Arlists
HAIR: Tomihiro Sono
MAKE-UP: Kanako Yoshida at LGA Management
MUSIC DIRECTION: Bill Kouligas
TEXT: Eliot Haworth
COMMUNICATION: Ibtissame Bellehouane
SPECIAL THANKS: Oscar Tuazon and Moran Morán