What happens when a city girl goes to the forest? Acne Studios might know the answer with its FW23 showing. Setting foot into the darkened show space, immediately we saw glammed-up hanging trees with jewelled hanging curtains and blossoming flowers. Bird chirps started blasting from the speakers before a tall figure blew into their brass instrument signalling to everyone the show is about to.
LEAFY-EVERYTHING
If the theme wasn’t obvious enough, the first look set the record straight: a green dress made out of green leaf motifs stepped out accompanied by thigh-high boots that look like they could have been made out of vines. The leaf then continued on an Adam and Eve reminiscent look, with larger leaves covering the body as well as stuck onto shoes. We also saw small leaves on wraparound vines from footwear. Acne Studios took the nature theme one step further with a Avatar-inspired blue body painted model featuring a natural landscape on his torso and arms.
DISHEVELLED IN THE WILD
It wouldn’t be a realistic forest adventure if clothes weren’t somewhat ripped apart – which is exactly what Acne Studios did. Frayed hems, intentional holes and ripped knits were all present on the runway. One look in particular, a green knitted dress with floral embellishments, rows removed, holes and loose threads, understood the assignment.
NEVER VENTURE OUT WITHOUT YOUR LEATHER PIECE
The city girl would not be complete without a healthy dose of leather pieces, even when leaving the skyscrapers for the great vines. Leather was seen on jackets, lace-up trousers and a jumpsuit with irregular white streaks around the ankles and shoulders. There was also a cropped heavy-duty brown leather jacket which looked like it had been inspired by the different colours of bark.Â
THE ACCESSORIES TO MATCH
A pocket knife, flashlight, anti-bug spray, lip gloss… You never know when you’ll need these essentials when venturing out into the wild. Thankfully, Acne Studios has thought of this and proposed several bags to keep all the items safe and secure. One was a double front pocket rectangular compact bag, coming in a faded grey, green and purple while another was a slouch bag with a silver handle coming in black and a brownish-grey.
STATEMENT COATS
Deep forest weather is harsh and unpredictable, which is why coats are a must-have. This season, we saw a dark beige trench coat with a layered wrap-around collar piece as well as an ankle-length navy buttoned-coat with a high neck. Elsewhere we saw a crinkled black blazer jacket and a faded purple trench cinched at the waist with a belt. While these may be more appropriate for a night out on the town than actual protective gear, the spirit is there.
More on CULTED
See: DIOR’S FW23 KEY TAKEAWAYS: HONOURING FRENCH WOMEN & REVISITING THE NEW LOOK
See: IT’S PARIS FASHION WEEK: HERE’S WHAT YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS
