Rick Owens Paris SS10

When you go to a Rick Owens show the words ‘what it says on the tin is what you get’ springs to mind. Most designers have signature details and garments, but Rick has a signature look. But that’s not bad though. If you want preppy button down shirts you go to Thom Browne, if you desire a casual double-breasted jacket visit a Dries van Noten shop, but whatever you do, don’t go to Owen’s new South Audley Street in London (or to any other branch, for that matter), because that just ain’t him! No, Owens does techno fashion. It’s about pushing clothes – the fabric, fit, shapes, colors, accessories, everything – to its very limit.

On Friday, in south Paris’ Bercy area, that’s exactly what the LA born-and-bred designer did. No fooling around, no tiptoeing – just pure hardcore attitude. Naturally there was transparent t-shirt fabrics and distressed leather jackets, but there was something else in the air; a knowledge – from both Rick and the audience – that this is it, this is a core Owens collection. The angular collar shapes, the layered tops and bottoms, the long knitwear dresses diagonally cut to the armpit, the cropped trousers and simple black boots, beautifully cut waistcoats and necklaces that was more like Roman breastplates than anything else, stood out.

Sure, the trainers were big and weird and I’m not too crazy about the multi-coloured leather jackets (white, beige and black) and why were they wearing beanie hats in a summer collection, but that’s all details. The bigger picture is as close to a Rembrandt as Paris got. And the Russian techno soundtrack rocked – my ears ached for hours!