Christine Boland on AW27 fashion: 'It's not escapism, so what is it?'

The zeitgeist is bleak and overcast. Creative sectors are responding with escape routes and solutions, with fashion leading the way. Christine Boland opens her trend seminar on next year's autumn/winter fashion with this observation. She predicts extravagant designs with a constructive purpose: to embolden people.

Grounding

Boland frames her trend forecasts within a societal desire to live a more grounded life. The first trend, which she calls “regrounding”, is about being present in the space, extending your attention span and working with your hands — in short, everything AI cannot do.

However, grounding is difficult, Boland states, given the overload of information forced upon us online. We see images without context and opinions that polarise. “We become alienated from ourselves and from others; we lack a shared truth and a connection with nature.” The question is not how to escape this complex reality, but how to coexist with it. Designers have their own ideas on this. They create clothes, bags and shoes that interpret these concepts. “That is their craft.” In her seminar, Boland translates these ideas into three distinct trends.

Individual familiarity

Familiar items with an innovative twist will become bestsellers, Boland predicts with her first trend, Individual Familiarity. For instance, folklore is reappearing in collections. However, Boland and her team could not trace many of these designs back to a single culture: Eastern European? Afghan? Liberty? They are mixtures of heritage. Boland calls this “bohemian beyond borders”. The art is to bring references together without naming them, so there is no question of cultural appropriation.

Layering is a method for making familiar items feel new. Boland points to the Prada show in February. Miuccia, who has been with the fashion house for almost half a century, spoke beforehand about simplifying complexity. She used 15 models instead of 60 and had them walk multiple times, each time with one less layer. The result was highly commercial fashion: a long-sleeved shirt under a jacket; lace peeking out from everywhere. For the complete look, you want it all. “However classic your client is, inspire them to try these kinds of combinations,” Boland advises.

Materials and craftsmanship can also evoke a sense of familiarity: intricate weaving in a bag; hand-knits; suede in a 70s brown. Designers use surface design to make fabrics more interesting. The rich jacquards in Gucci's winter collection and the metallic finishes at No 21 are prime examples. These techniques can also be layered, and in that case, more is more.

Freshness is also achieved by playing with proportions. After a constant widening of trousers across the entire gender spectrum, the upper body is now becoming wider: 80s shoulders, a broad chest. The trousers or skirt underneath are narrowed for contrast.

Designers are free to exaggerate even further. They can combine wearable fashion with thigh-high patent leather boots, as seen at For All Mankind. Alternatively, they can accentuate the body with leather belts in unusual places, such as just below the hips, as seen at Chanel.

In terms of colour, Boland expects plenty of celadon blue with aubergine, a greenish-brown from the seventies and a “vicious yellow”. We have seen bright and neon colours before. The autumnal shades from the Etro and Missoni spectrum also reappear, but in unexpected combinations. The key is to choose one hue and make it pop. Otherwise, it just becomes nostalgia, and nostalgia does not drive progress.

Dramatic antidote

The second trend Boland identifies for turning the tide is Dramatic Antidote. She cites Valentino's winter collection, where Alessandro Michele presented theatrical sequins and filled deep V-neck blouses with lace, topped with a statement necklace. At Saint Laurent, we saw all-over lace that enveloped the entire body. Margiela's skirts looked as if they came from the French court; they were grandiose in their execution and the fabric appeared to be 3D printed. This is not fashion for wallflowers. “We don't wait for a party for these kinds of outfits,” says Boland, adding that the attitude is part of the look.

For grandeur, the materials must be substantial: sturdy velvet (not faux silk); bronze buttons (not plastic); and embroidery with gold thread. LCD Textiles, a Milan-based fabric producer, set the tone during design week with a fully dressed dining table, where even the plates were crafted from fine silver silk. Anything less would not suffice. In that sense, the trend is not suited for every customer.

With “dramatic antidote”, Boland also refers to the political undertones of fashion. It is a reaction to the conservative movement that wants to place women back in traditional domestic roles. They believe ambitious women should take a step back. Fashion designers, however, disagree. Adrian Appiolaza at Moschino portrays the working woman in skirt suits with revealing lace panels and broad-shouldered blazers with ruffles that swing in every direction. There is nothing prim about it. David Koma's models are even grunge-like in deeply cut black tops and tulle skirts. They do not hide; they reveal their bodies with confidence.

In this trend narrative, more conservative colours are gaining ground. Designers favour beige, white, black and historical pastels, as well as antique rose and petrol blue. Embellishments are made of gold, bronze and antique silver, preferably in matte finishes rather than high-gloss.

Unapologetic presence

The third trend, Unapologetic Presence, demands space. This includes the physical space you occupy with your body and the mental space you claim by standing out. Boland invites us to look at fashion through the lens of Jeff Koons: “Here I am” and “look at me.” Examples from the catwalk include Loewe's teddy bear coat complete with ears; the patent leather dresses by Christian Siriano; and the chick-yellow fur coats from Max Mara.

The technical interpretation ranges from sculptural pleats in sturdy fabrics to architectural collars (funnel necks) and built-up shoulders worn over slimmer trousers. Consider the stylised coats with perfectly round-cut waists at Jil Sander; the padded shoulder tops at Carven; and the oversized fur coats at Saint Laurent. A more modest example is Sacai's scarf with button details; this can be styled down over a crisp shirt.

Colours within this trend, the loudest of the three, shift from primary shades to frog green, Yves Klein blue and fuchsia. They are allowed to be bright and to clash. Colour blocking is making a comeback. Not everyone will like it, and that is precisely the point. Unapologetic presence is a mission, a liberating viewpoint that consumers still need to be convinced of. Boland states: “You cannot be present without making excuses unless you are bold from time to time.”

The inflatables appearing everywhere also fit this fashion narrative. Moschino led the way three years ago with its pool party collection. Since then, they have appeared as art objects in stores and on the catwalk. During Milan Design Week in April, Moncler placed a huge inflatable red octopus in 10 Corso Como, with eight legs peeking out from between windows and walls. The message of such an object is the same as that of the inflated clothes: take up space.