New season, new location, new opener. Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin has gone under the knife, kick starting the Spring/Summer 2015 show set with a new look and outlook. The four day event commenced this morning with torrential downpour at its new location, the Erika-Hess Eis-Stadion situated in Wedding—an ethnically diverse neighborhood of Berlin, boasting a growing creative community. Berlin, it seems, became just about as Berlin as it could get.
Designer Julian Zigerli inaugurated the runway shows for the first time (replacing seasoned opener Hien Le), showcasing a quirky men’s sportswear collection, vibrant in prints and diverse fabrics for SS 15. The impish collection title “Life is One of the Hardest” could not be further from the truth for Julian, who nabbed a Swiss Design award and an Armani runway show in 2014. Foam sandals, kooky prints, see-through suits, wild cut-outs, and sunglasses designed by Andy Wolf made for a collection challenging to even the bravest of fashionable men. It’s only the first day, but we know that this will be one of the most exciting collections to arrive at MBFWB SS 15
Next up was Ivanman, who presented yet another strong men’s wear collection. The young designer who won the Net-A-Porter Who’s Next award in the men’s wear category in 2012, opened the stage presentations displaying a brave combination of colour and structure. With a palette of cobalt blues, bright pinks, the collection was on one hand bold and grasping, whilst also intermingling khaki and creams to add a subtler aspect. Whilst the colours may have been bold, the structure was distinctly sophisticated, at times even classical, with high-waisted trousers and tailored shorts adding a formal element to his collection. There was above all a welcome return to simplicity in this collection, focussing on interesting structure and silhouette, and with his fine attention to detail and desire for clean design, this collection was a resounding success.
Finally, the name on every editor’s mind was Michael Sontag who was noticeably absent from the AW runway. This past year has seen the designer attempting to break free and evolve from a purely minimalistic mindset. Michael presented his signature Grecian gowns and sophisticated basics spruced with crystals, zealous ruching, erratic colours, and cut-outs. Although it was difficult to tell from where we were seated, the collection seemed to contain a little bit of everything.
That’s it’ for day one. Stay tuned for more runway recaps and highlights!
