Calvin Klein AW17

Calvin Klein is about as iconic as designers get. I’ve always considered him to be the personification of American fashion, much more so than someone like Ralph Lauren. Klein had always been at the forefront of modern, minimal design; more adept at advertising and marketing than most of his contemporaries. Since Klein’s departure the brands fortunes have been up and down but they’ve never quite matched the dizzying heights of his 80’s and 90’s heyday. After a brief and sometimes controversial tenure at Dior, Raf Simons has taken the helm, but how will his unique take on fashion sit well with the legacy of Calvin Klein?

First up Raf changed the logo, with the help of Peter Saville of course. Raf has been using Saville’s work in his own line for years so it’s fitting the pair would come together to revamp one of the most iconic fashion logos of all time. But that was just the beginning, let’s talk about the clothes. Showing both menswear and womenswear, Raf made a point of blurring gender lines. Several looks are almost identical for men and women. Klein did after all pioneer gender-bending advertising campaigns in the 90’s. Overall the collection was simultaneously both retro and modern, and while that might sound like an oxymoron, there’s something about the colours and styling that offers the best of both these worlds, the effect was startlingly modern. Is this the start of a whole new aesthetic for Clavin Klein, and what effect will it have on Raf’s own line? How ill his influence effect the rest of Calvin Klein’s substantial empire? From fragrances to underwear the scope is huge. Only time will tell.