Don't Box Me In

STOP!!  HOLD THE PRESS!! (Not sure what holding-of-the-press I'm referring to there...) Sandra Backlund, whose extraordinary knits have been around the internet and press block so much so that her lookbook images may be up there in the collections circulation chart, has not got any chunky hand knits in her new collection.  And.... *draws deep breath* she has used...fabric, NOT knits to create her sculptural pieces.  Do you need some water?  Something to fan you down perhaps?  I may be jesting but when I went to her showroom today, Sandra did tell me some people were quite physically shocked.  

Me?  Actually, the surprise didn't hit me as hard.  Whilst Sandra has made cornered knitwear into her own structural niche and has pushed people's idea of the genre, I never thought she was one of those designers restricted by the medium in the same way that I think people like Louise Goldin would do just fine handling a piece of woven fabric.  For Sandra, it's her shapes in knitwear that have always sparked interest for me and her particular way of seeing how things can interlock with each other.  I'm reminded of interviewing the Meadham Kirchoff boys after their recent dressup fantasy shocker A/W 10-11 collection and they said "Our aesthetic can't be defined by just a few collections!" and for a relatively young designer like Backlund, it's also true that she has a lot more to give than just built up tetris-piece knits, which for her would actually be the easy way out.

This season was therefore a challenge to enter new territory and for Backlund to push herself without the collection manifesting as just another series of out-there, attention-grabbing pieces.  Not that, the A/W 10-11 collection is of course competely without those familiar elements... as illustrated by the piece below which has been created with nylon that has been ribbed to look like the knitted ribbing she has used in the past...

I love the corset detailing on the sides of this dress...

The interlocking knits plays out in organza plisse...

 

Naturally team soccer jerseys, knitted pieces are still in the mix and pushing machine knits once again, she has created a frayed texture which is achieved by cutting up the machine knit to reveal rows of flesh revealing holes...

Sandra's love of the astrakhan texture led her to also developing this stretch knit that ruches up to give the appearance of that familiar black fur.  Apparently this took many an attempt before they got it right...

 

I'm longing for the moment when all the elements which Sandra has explored come together to form a complete collection of her full prowess. These small collections, shown privately, allow her to play with all the elements Sandra feels she is capable of and hopefully have paved the way for her to fully stand up and strongly declare her presence in the future.  I'm waiting for a ROAR Sandra... a big LOUD one...