Since R13’s brand inception, Chris Leba has defined an edgy, angst-y, cool feeling through an interesting play on proportions and reworked, timeless ideas in collections that flex a balance between what he describes as “newness and sameness.” He does so by continually building up the brand wardrobing through “micro-levels that aren’t very obvious, but if you follow, you see the slow evolution of the brand.”
For pre-fall, his R13 collection was sartorial as ever, riffing on exaggerated silhouettes and layered up tailoring with Malcolm McLaren and the Sex Pistols-influenced punk styles.
“Taking traditional, polished silhouettes — that’s something I wanted with this collection — at a glance, it’s very classic and simple, but there’s a whole other layer of messaging,” he noted.
“Things always build on each other, it goes from skinny to loosened up to bigger, you’re always upping the ante. We’ve been doing baggy silhouettes for a few seasons now, so we wanted to make it even bigger,” Leba added of the myriad pant silhouettes.
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The look: Modern takes on British punk.
Quote of note: “I was on Pinterest going over photos and came across one of Malcolm McLaren and started to notice, ‘Why are they all wearing rowing jackets,’ which is very traditional, and ‘why are the punks wearing this?’ I realized that the statement was taking all the establishment and defacing it in a way, ripping it up, adding spikes and studs. It’s a political statement against the establishment in a way,” Leba told WWD, adding, “One of the things we like to do, and are good at, is playing with patterns. In a lot of ways, we’re excellent architects who articulate shapes.”
Key pieces: A prep-meets-punk oversize rowing blazer and cardigans; quintessential tailored and denim jackets, and flannel shirting, with architectural, exaggerated sleeves; denim pants and tartan trousers with elongated hems, slouched and ripped appeal or paint-splattered accents; cheeky vintage university-inspired T-shirts and hoodies with “S.T.F.U.” and “F.U.” letters atop R13’s take on classic white button-ups.
Takeaway: Antiestablishment, the R13 way, felt fresh as ever in styles that offered ample attitude with realistic wearability.