Since becoming creative director of Zurich-based fashion house Vetements at the tail end of 2021 — he was cofounder and chief executive officer before — Guram Gvasalia has acquired a zeal for fittings that borders on the obsessional.
He took this to a new zenith with the fall 2023 Vtmnts collection, unveiling it via the working snaps of his male and female fit models in the same garments, having meticulously adjusted the patterns so that each works “for all genders,” as he put it.
Gvasalia concentrated on tailoring and wardrobe essentials with a wink to the clean, subtly sexy minimalism exemplified by Calvin Klein in the 1990s.
“I wanted to do a collection with no gimmicks, no hidden agenda, no shock,” he said in a phone interview after dispatching photos of handsome trenchcoats, neat white shirts, roomy blazers, colorful varsity jackets and lean leather pants, largely free of logos and dramatic fashion flourishes. Instead of gaping holes at the knees of jeans, for example, there is a small slash, if any.
He also wanted gentler price tags, recognizing the hardship inflation and the looming recession will impose on many this year: Hence no splashy runway show, no pampered VIPs flown on private jets, no freebies for influencers, and no glitzy ad campaign, all the elements that are contributing elsewhere to nosebleed prices.
That said, he didn’t skimp on fabrics or manufacturers, using the finest Europe has to offer, in a bid to offer the best bang for the buck and “a collection that reflects the current times.”
Gvasalia describes Vetements and Vtmnts, a second brand introduced for spring 2022, as different as Prada and Miu Miu and vowed that the distinctions will become clearer with the next Vetements reveal — time, place and fit all TBD.