Rejina Pyo collection presentation for LFW S/S 2016

Distorting the boundaries between artist and designer, Rejina Pyo exhibited her presentation for Spring/Summer 2016 at the Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, set against a backdrop of artist Luke Diiorio’s Sunset Park folded, sculptural canvas paintings.  It is this blend of sculpture and art that Pyo invokes within her work, her Central Saint Martin’s MA graduation collection employing wooden sculptures, juxtaposing fluid dresses and her constant dalliance between disciplines has seen Pyo a recipient of the Han Nefkens Fashion Award.

Aztec blue over-sized, loose-fitting, blouse and rust orange wide fit trousers, Pyo’s own almost Sonia Rykiel-esque, screen-printed designs adorned silk dresses set on fawn and earthy yellow browns.  White patches of feathers were appliqued onto ink blue duchess satin gowns, seams outlined in white, with silk petticoats in organza peeking out from the hems. Some pieces had a rawness to them, with unfinished hems on skirts and cut-off white trousers.

Over-sized elements such as a large, circular zipper handle on an Aztec blue suede jacket and over-sized pockets on jackets and light organza skirts add a 60s element to the shapes, in addition to the sunglasses – a collaboration with Korean brand Projekt Produkt.  Waists were cinched in, a key trend for Spring/Summer, also seen at Eudon Choi and Phoebe English.  Bias cut hems came in rust orange, strapped handkerchief dresses in duchess satin ivory, prints and cut-off trousers set in rust and light fluoro orange, with highlights of mint green and teal, whilst blues shone in lavender and teal.

The collection evoked a warm, Mayan summer, with models set in a sculptural realm of terracotta and glittering metallic golds and it is this dialogue between artist and designer that defines Rejina Pyo’s design signature and for which she is sure to accumulate fans within both disciplines, as well as the interplay between the two.

Victoria Geaney
Photos: Filippo L’Astorina