“Witch please” read Kévin Nompeix’s t-shirt at the Egonlab show. It was a funny, punny interpretation (see: “bitch, please”) of the more serious notion that occupied his mind and that of his creative partner Florentin Glémarec. They said practically in unison: “We are the new witches of Salem.”
“We” as in minorities, they explained. As in gay, trans, queer, Black, brown. Immigrants, outsiders, the other and the othered. “You know, based on what’s happening in politics everywhere,” Nompeix continued. Everywhere, yes, but most notably in Donald Trump’s first address as the 47th President of the United States on Monday, when he declared that it would be “official policy” of the United States government that “there are only two genders.”
This is not a subject to tackle lightly or, perhaps worse, render shallow. To their credit, Nompeix and Glémarec approached their witch-parallel with sophistication rather than gimmick. This show, which was the designers’ return to the runway after a season away, was less an interpretation of witchy garb than it ws an effective experiment in harnessing some of the sartorial power that have made the aforementioned minorities such gold mines for fashion inspiration: elegant, exuberant, flamboyant. Those shaggy collars and cuffs were as witchy as the proceedings got, which is to say not much at all.
“It had to feel grown up,” continued Nompeix, insisting that he and Glémarec are ready not to be “the young brand” anymore. It was a convincing proposition: Super high breaks on slim tailored jackets and coats cut an elongated and dressy silhouette that read specific and, for lack of a better term, queer (as in “gay” or as in “different,” reader’s choice, and either way a compliment). A run of nipped waist single button jackets with wide, rounded sleeves will be sure winners, too, if priced to capture the Egonlab demographic. (Heads were nodding in approval on both the celebrity and press sides of the runway, by the way.)
The pair also presented a line of handbags produced in collaboration with Zadig&Voltaire. They looked cool and desirable. Less convincing was the leather fringe cascading from drain-sized metal grommets—fun, sure, but a tad too reminiscent of another designer’s work. Part of growing up and leveling up is learning to not look too closely at one’s neighbors. Still, these clothes had confidence to spare—that’s the magic these witches need to keep conjuring.
