The Kiko Kostadinov Fall/Winter 2023 collection was a celebration of the forgotten figures that contributed to the history of avant-garde women’s fashion: Anne-Marie Beretta, Krizia, Irene Lentz and the Sorelle Fontana – nods to quiet superstars of the Italian canon mingled with gestures from the graduate collection of Laura and Deanna Fanning – Kostadinov’s closest collaborators. The color palette was untamed and electric, unfolding in a collection of both hybrid and modular garments. Dismantled tailoring was reassembled, furled and unfurled. Symmetries were challenged through drape and manipulation.

The London-based Estonian painted Mariann Metsis contributed fragments of work to the collection: figurative canine forms and abstract color fields that were applied as digital print, intarsia knitwear and sculptural hardware. Other decorative anomalies appear in the form of naive découpage: arts & crafts by Kostadinov’s maternal grandmother printed on blanket scarves and felted knitwear. Matching ensembles – suits in the loose sense of the term – created graphic two-tone contrasts in drying or felted wool, scored corduroy and crisp cotton, as pintucks, kite-shaped tabs and epaulets create structure and movement. Utility was softened in sack-back capes and petal trenches, engineered blazers are encrusted with striped cotton lapels and chequerboard knit panels, and a detachable padded overcoat became a bolero and a belted skirt. Trouser silhouettes explored irregular patchwork and volume, tucked into highwayman booths or flowing over lace-up derbies and wave-sole scratch trainers. 

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