Tapping into the current fascination with office culture, Julie Kegels mined the ’80s book “Executive Style” for clever takes on workwear for her fall collection.
The dress-for-success tome is a time capsule of ideas on how to achieve wealth and power through good taste — the “fake it until you make it” ethos converted to hardback.
Kegels explored what she sees as a topsy-turvy philosophy. “It’s a bit of a naïve way of thinking,” she said.
The Belgian designer took the codes of so-called successful groups — the three-quarter zip fleeces of finance bros, the ‘80s chief executive officer power suit — and turned them upside down, quite literally in the case of pencil skirts with exposed linings extended up as a top, or exposed pads jutting from shoulders.
A Barbour jacket was pleated and cinched at the waist for a more romanticized take on the trendy-again classic.
She also looked to social signifiers such as Eames chairs to create tufted accessories, including a handbag that could double as a pillow, gathered tops and velvet gown dotted with buttons. Screen-printed photos of furniture on skirts presented her take on how to “camouflage yourself in a successful world,” which is only an illusion in the end.
Eighties interiors with all their wood-paneled glory were reinterpreted in a burled print pattern present on blouses and blazers, but most masterfully in a sculptural piece made from real wood and shaped into a full-length gown.
Held at an historic theater on the outskirts of town, Kegel’s show was part performance piece as a model dressed herself as the opening act. After the 35 looks ran their course, the model returned for a surprise last scene: the separates she had started with had morphed into a single suit unzipped with one pull from the back.
Our heroine freed herself from her corporate armor. Can we?
