Calvin Luo RTW Fall 2021

Lily Templeton
·2 min read

Given the pandemic, Calvin Luo had to find new ways to commemorate his brand’s 10th collection. In the process, he found that what he missed the most was the pre-show buzz of the backstage and the guests. The result was a collection that summarized his work so far and the “Front Row Project,” in which 100 women who epitomize the brand — editors, buyers and brand devotees — have been captured wearing his designs and spliced into a virtual show setting.

The look: An overview of the Calvin Luo playbook of clean tailoring and tough femininity, revisited with bright color-blocking.

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Quote of note: “I don’t want people to think this is just an archive collection, because I feel I’m still at the beginning. This is a way to bring everyone back to meet my work,” he said on a WeChat call from his base in Shanghai. “I’m happy because it turned out to be a meaningful process. With a show, people come and go, but here, we had the opportunity to have conversations that inspire me for the next chapter.”

Standout pieces: Tailored jackets in several variations of collars and pockets, belted; cropped knit vests and little jackets that stopped around the middle of the torso and emphasized the waist; a blazer decked in sequins in an abstract pattern and worn with dress shorts; a work-appropriate little black dress that can be separated into a midriff-baring brassiere and matching skirt.

Takeaway: Like others this season, Luo is banking on the idea that women will want to face the fall in clean tailored lines, and he provided styles for them to mix to taste. Bright tones made his tough cuts feel less forbidding while giving his silhouettes visual depth.

Launch Gallery: Calvin Luo RTW Fall 2021

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