Style & Design
Originally published on Thursday, 18th September 2008
Bernard Chandran
The combination of bold colours, highly elaborate construction techniques and unique silhouettes could have spelt disaster for a catwalk collection, but with the odd over the top piece Monsieur Chandran successfully negotiated the path between innovation and unwearable oddity. The very first curved strapless dress set the tone; it was carved in four panels to create a wonderful egg dress without being bulky or exaggerated.
The arcs of stitched and panelled fabrics offered silhouettes with assorted balance and emphasis from deeply wrapped and looped hemlines to winged shoulders. The influence of Pierre Cardin and the 60's approach to modernsim this might have been hinted at didn't stop the collection from retaining its own identity. Standouts included a sharp orange shift with a wonderful stitched flat "bow" in black, a cocoon cape in stiffened Poiret rose lace, and an extreme panniered dress cut on the bias to create a totally fluid, yet rigid structure. There was one superb dress covered in extraordinary embroidery of what appeared to be the insides of antique watches or the cogs and wheels of an 18th century marionette. Finally to return to the colour; acid bronze yellow, and shaded sequins in orchid shades and even the shade of vintage face powder were amongst the tones used.
