A Woman Left Lonely: a collaboration of beauty and brains

A new era of fashion has begun. Showcasing collections as art and in films has become a given, but a story through pictures with the minds of three greats is far less common.

Eugenia Pavlenko the photographer, Nastya Bessonova the stylist and model, and Ksenia Schnaider, her S/S 2014 collection being displayed make the components of the shoot, successfully manage to display fashion with a strong meaning behind it.

Schnaider’s new collection, which is titled Protection, is the perfect accompaniment to the goals of Pavlenko and Bessonova. It highlights the importance of the “protective function in clothing”, with collars, lapels, square cuts and military pants to match. This collection doesn’t just concern itself with the camouflage theme of their last collection, but signifies protection on a larger scale, with mainly block and bold colours to play with.

The meanings behind her latest collection match the story that was produced: that women can survive by themselves, they are self sufficient and can provide their own protection. But staying in theme with the contrasts in the shoot, there can be a double meaning of feeling vulnerable, and as stated in the title, lonely, when you do happen to be all alone.

The simple statement pieces that were portrayed in the shoot all have a certain je ne sais quoi about them; the way that the wind catches upon the rich luxurious material, the vibrant colours that stand out upon the muted cold background, even the way they hang off the model but still maintain their feminine nature, they all mount up to the questionable reason as to why this woman is alone.

However, the questions don’t need to be answered, or even asked, as the simplicity of the shoot and the clothing should make everything else clear. With two extremely talented minds being put together with the help of a deep and insightful designer, the story not only showcases the talents of the individuals, but the talents that clothing itself can have.

Tamara Massey

To view the collection click here, and to see the story click here.