Review of Acne Studios Fall 2023 Fashion Show
Into the Woods
By Mark Wittmer
For Fall 2023, Acne Studios draws inspiration from the ever-changing and interconnected landscapes and life systems of the Earth’s forests for a category-defying exploration of fashion topography.
Created by artist and set designer Shona Heath, the show’s set – a copse of fantastical, gnarled trees roots crafted with weaving and beading techniques and punctuated by iridescent blooms – creates a psychedelic and darkly whimsical atmosphere among the subdued lighting and inky black of the space. Speaking to the partnership, creative director Jonny Johansson explained, “We wanted to create a magical place that captured the topography of a dark forest. I love how forests are always changing, growing, transforming.”
This point of reference develops across the collection both in its literal use of leaf and flower motifs and in the sense of a layering of growth and decay that echoes the interconnected ecosystems of a teeming understory.
This feeling begins at the level of the material of the collection itself. Denim is waxed and distressed to resemble gnarled treebark; crinkled and shredded fabrics echo last season’s dried and decaying leaves that litter the forest floor; dye splotches bring to mind slime molds and fungal growth reclaiming the soil; knitwear has runs and rips as if torn by tree branches, or as if sprouting like a tree branch itself. Every inch of every look is alive with texture, drawing the eye ever deeper.
The sense of textural togetherness and mutually interpenetrative growth and decay extends across the categories and construction of garments as well, blurring the lines between categories and individuals. Oversized tailored outerwear is deconstructed and reworked. Smocks that feel too short to be dresses and too long to be shirts are paired with side lacing statement pants. Revealing asymmetrical dresses feel pieced together, yet perfectly as they should be.
While colors are for the most part muted and earthy, an occasional pop of vibrant color darts through, like a rare flower opening its ephemeral bloom.
Among this shifting arboreal world, Acne Studios’ penchant for gender fluidity feels especially poignant. Concrete gender has no basis in nature; here things defy category and genre, dependent on an interconnected system while remaining always vitally themselves.
In an age of increasing and unchecked environmental destruction, a collection that celebrates complex natural beauty feels especially urgent.
Harnessing craft and imagination, the collection focuses Acne Studios’ penchant for off-kilter layering and experimentation through a distinct and vital creative lens.
