10 September 2024 |
To celebrate Area’s 10th anniversary, co-founder and creative director Piotrek Panszczyk presented an AW24 collection that walked the line between conformity and rebellion.
Starting out with an exploration of uniform, silhouettes were predominantly boxy and plainly patterned – save for the barely-there bodysuits, hotpants and pasties – in a deferential palette of dark navy, beige, black and white. Defiant pops of yellow, silver and red came later on in the form of beaded, photorealistic and feathered hand motifs inspired by the silver gelatin photography of artists like Bruce Conner and Man Ray. Adhering to the New York label’s inherently playful, high-luxe design language, name plates, dog tags, and door plaques were subverted next, with the identifying tablets recontextualised as futuristic face shields or decadent brass hardware bedecked with deep, navy-blue cabochons.
Fingerprints then took shape as enlarged graphics dancing across a trench coat and sharp-shouldered dress like tiger stripes – or perhaps I should say, human stripes? Either way, it brought a supremely chic mood to the offering, coordinating perfectly with the plethora of hands that had their grip on the rest of the collection.
Cropping up about half way through the show, was a fan favourite top: an exclusive ‘Bans Off Our Bodies’ T-shirt created in collaboration with Tinder in support of reproductive rights. But this wasn’t just any red-hand stamped tee, it was the catalyst for Tinder to make a $25,000 donation in Area’s honour to Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
One decade in, and with many more to go, Area is about fashion for the greater good.
Photography by Bella Macgregor.
