Vetements, literally meaning ‘clothing’ in French, looks at fashion in simple terms. To get a grasp of the aesthetic of Vetements, Head Designer, Demna Gvasalia designed womenswear at fashion houses Maison Martin Margiela and Louis Vuitton. Gvasalia is currently at the head of Balenciaga, whilst staying committed to Vetements, formed in 2014. The brand is renowned for creating casual wear, such as hoodies, jumpers, tops and dresses and oversizing them.
It is the new spring 2017 capsule collection with sports brands Champion and Reebok that is the focus for Vetements. The colour palette adheres to the classically ‘Champion’ colours of red, white and blue. An interesting, but perfect fit for Vetements, in that these sports brands are not as relevant or renowned as Nike or Adidas, however have been altered to become a step-sister of sports brands. In this way, Vetements’ manipulation of, perhaps, outdated clothing is representative of Vetements’ outsider position in fashion, remaining different from the more established houses, such as Chanel or Dolce and Gabanna. In terms of the clothing’s structure, the oversized length and width of the sleeves are typical of Vetements, making it a recognisable brand. The consistent use of the Champion logo is also a striking feature of this collection. Unlike other brands, Vetements’ collaboration is seen to enhance the sports brand, by using the logo as a central aspect of the clothing. This shows Vetements as a brand which provides an updated take on another brand; the collection is well-blended in terms of mixing features of both. Gvasalia’s designs have respected the heritage of Champion and Reebok, whilst creating the feel of a new type of sports brand. The balance between advertising each brand is helped by Vetements’ logo being the immediate focus on Reebok’s socks. In this way, these designs could be used to create different combinations of brands and dimensions of clothing within the collection. With the logo of Champion on a jumper and the logo of Vetements on socks or shoes, both brands seem to reach a perfect balance between being classic and new.
The silhouettes are most definitely unconventional, but that is exactly what Vetements embodies. In an interview with The Minimalista, Gvasalia referenced his take on streetwear, stating “What we like about streetwear is the reality of it. That’s what we see people wear, hoodies, bomber jackets, denim pants. It’s something very real that we can all connect to”. In this way, Gvasalia takes standard clothing and distorts it. This collection isn’t exempt from this methodology. All brands involved are recognised individually, but also work well together in unison. On the whole, Vetements has provided an impetus for the oversized aesthetic and brought it to classic brands, normalising the ‘Vetements look’. Sports branded clothing are being worn more frequently as leisure wear, seen by Kanye West’s Yeezy collections, as well as Maison Margiela’s collections. Vetements is one of the initial few brands which brought the oversized look to the forefront. Gvasalia has created a capsule collection which is not only comfortable, but cool.