04 Oct 2021
The musical legacy and studies of John Cage, one of the leading American figures of the post-war avant-garde, serve as the inspiration for the Sportmax Spring-Summer 2022 collection. An artist, producer, composer and music theorist, Cage’s career culminated with his most celebrated composition 4’33’’, which was performed in absence of deliberate sound. It is with this masterpiece that the new Sportmax collection takes flight.
Spring and summer looks unfurl in an exploration of the dichotomy between order and chaos, and light and obscurity, as well as the stark contrast between noise and silence, as illustrated in Cage’s depiction of the perfect state of purity. Together with his life companion, choreographer Merce Cunningham, Cage made it his life’s work to explore this relationship of opposites within the realms of both music and dance. In the same vein, Sportmax conjures this ethos, by pursuing the possibility of reconciling conflicting themes and motifs, by grafting a Baroque sensibility into minimalist functional codes.
The intent within the fashion show, as well as within the designs themselves, is to challenge traditional, aesthetic perceptions, in order to convey a sense of escape within the canonic structure of a collection.
Looks come to life through a fragmented lens, where a controlled clash between essential silhouettes and volumes creates an almost theatrical image. Shapes embrace the body with fragments like architected 18th century corsets, which juxtapose fanciful embossing and puffs designed with ultra clean lines. Tailored jackets are defined by new sidecuts and worn with soft leggings.
The array of fabrics was also contemplated in the spirit of Cage’s study of contrasts. The lightness of gauze, georgette and tulle are distinguish themselves from the consistency of leather, satin, cotton and jacquard, while the abundance of jersey and knitwear is a modern salute to the world of dance.
The color palette is a soft divertissement of nude, whites and ecru, which is again in contrast to shades of orange, fuchsia, yellow, light blue and lilac.
Platform heels dominate the array of accessories. Light-weight, avant-garde eyewear is purposely exaggerated. Gloves crafted in stocking- effect jersey or adorned with sequins are accompanied by a selection of clutches in leather or satin and XXL nylon backpacks. Composer Teho Teardo (featuring Blixa Bargeld) sets the tone for the entire season with a special playlist tailored for the Sportmax runway show. Infused with his own microscopic sounds that are almost imperceptible to the human ear, Teardo forms a connection that defines new intangible forms. Adorned in stark white, the setting penetrates the crowd with a feeling of infinite space and contemplative silence.
