In this visual dialogue between light, shadow and sculpture, timeless fashion brand ANEST COLLECTIVE reveals its sartorial Spring/Summer 2022 collection. My Body is a Sculpture takes the brand’s ready-to-wear pieces for men and women and blends it with fluid choreography that elevates fashion into meticulously crafted works of art.
ANEST COLLECTIVE ’s SS22 presentation draws inspiration from photographic techniques and the work of French contemporary painter Pierre Soulages. Described as “the master of black,” Soulages is interested in how ambient light reflects off heavy swatches of black paint. The collection follows the same mode of inquiry, as seen in the black silk-blend dress with cascading pleats and the black single-breasted blazer. In this short poetic film, the garments hug the dancers’ twisting forms in the same way shadows hug light. “From looking at the reference images and the collection, you get a feeling of movement,” says ANEST COLLECTIVE Contributing Creative Director Brendan Mullane. “We wanted to achieve a harmony between the language of construction and a feeling of lightness.”
The bodies of the two dancers fold into each other like a double exposure image, amplifying the collection’s leaning toward optical illusions. This playful approach to fashion reveals itself in items such as an ivory shirt dress with a leather belt that seems to be two separate pieces, harmoniously paired together. The entire collection is based on “the whole idea of going deeper,” says Mullane, “of finding more than what can be seen at first glance.”