Maxime Simoëns was in a melancholy mood for fall. Théodore Géricault’s painting “The Raft of the Medusa” — a nod to the current European migrant crisis — provided one of his main motifs for the season, worked in jacquard on a bomber jacket, printed in monochrome on fluid shirting, or on a hoodie printed with the text “Sur/Vivant” (a play on “survivor” and “living”).
Elsewhere, evoking a Victorian curiosity cabinet, butterflies and caterpillars talked of metamorphosis, a message that evoked the revival of his label in what was his third collection since its relaunch, informing feminine pieces like fluid viscose maxidresses and bow-necked blouses.
Color-blocked tailoring in rich natural fabrics, including the elastic-waisted pants he turned into a signature in his foray into menswear, as well as structured knits, provided a backbone for his androgynous register, offering some appealing wardrobe staples for fall in jewel and neutral tones in his most commercial collection since he pressed reset.
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Each piece’s features a numbered label, part of the designer’s philosophy of cultivating rarity, and is produced in a maximum of 50 pieces. While his first two collections since relaunch featured repurposed elements from his men’s line, this one was all new — strong sales, especially Stateside, have exhausted any deadstock to hand.