They Dream in Colour
Review of Loewe Fall 2026 Fashion Show
By Angela Baidoo
A cure-all for even the most severe case of winter blues, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez’s Loewe is projecting that even in these dark times the future can look bright if approached with a dose of measured humour.
Choosing not to settle for the archetypal autumnal palette of rich dark tones, the design duo preferred to dream in technicolour and place playfulness at the heart of their fall collection.
THE COLLECTION
THE VIBE
Humorous Experimentation , Playful Expressions, Craft-like Devotion
In the spirit of playfulness, the mise en scène showspace was created in collaboration with German artist Cosima von Bonin and featured life-sized plushies – or textile sculptures – that took the form of animated clams, a St. Bernard, a killer whale and a lobster in black velvet. This light-hearted take on the spectacle is the kind the industry can get behind and not look out of touch. Taking their seats among the shows guests, the partnership also served its purpose of adding a note of levity to the occasion of the design duos second collection for the Spanish house.
For fall 2026, school was in session for lessons in craft and how to innovate with hand-rendered techniques. A leather coat in black and red featured curled and loose fringes, pastel shearling came complete with an ombre effect created using the same techniques as those found in a dog grooming parlour, and an alternative red carpet dress was made from multiple loops created using caviar beads.
While their first collection was focussed on setting out to establish their own brand codes through shape and structure, this collection was a study in soft (almost squidgy) surface manipulation which is where they feel at home. As with most playtime object’s, such as Lego, the opportunity for multiple outcomes is limited only by ones imagination. And this season they were endlessly curious in their pursuit of fabric and surface development. Reframing the optimism seen in their spring 2026 collection, here that attitude become more experimental.
Rubberised trompe l’oeil slip dresses in juicy hues were 3D printed to become moulded doppelgängers, fur minis came with open backs, and organically engineered knitted dresses made from ‘ultra-thin leather yarn’ were hitched up on one side. Humour was also used to challenge, seen as a way to disguise the delivery of a serious message, the outerwear in the collection pushed the designers limits. Flight jackets were affixed with hoods that looked as if they were mid-flight, unassuming tailored coats were layered with inflatable petticoat or scarves. And speaking of inflatables (which the show invitation alluded to, being that it was an air-filled crab claw) sports jackets and anoraks in red, yellow, and blue could act as their own floatation devices as they too were air-filled with mouth pieces attached to allow the wearer to adapt the jackets with ease. While humorous, their performative practicality can’t be denied.
The duo are building the foundations of a new Loewe house and their methods are setting them up for success. As these troubling times have many questioning the very output of the industry, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez are looking towards the light and proposing that we become childlike – read playful – in our daily interactions with the way we dress.
THE WRAP UP
At face value this may not have initially presented as a fall collection (outside of the fur outerwear), but as the world’s climate continues to change, with warmer and wetter seasons forecasted (Paris fashion week itself has welcomed warmer than average days, upending the meticulously planned looks of the editors in attendance), and the luxury consumer no longer confined to the West, McCollough and Hernandez may pioneer the start of a movement to design in alignment with the way the world is, and how people actually want to shop.
A long fought battle behind-the-scenes, the industry working in sync with the seasons would be a game-changer and Loewe is showing how it could be done with what, in all honesty, presented as a year-round buildable wardrobe for the Loewe customer, on whatever continent they call home.
