The paradox of Skall

This show review was translated from Danish to English by Graham Addinall.

LÆS DEN DANSKE UDGAVE HER

Skall Studio, Wednesday, January 30, 2024 at 12.00, Fabrikken for Kunst og Design

There is a paradox within Copenhagen Fashion Week, wherein the sustainability parameter doesn’t quite align with our traditional expectations of fashion, namely desire, abundance, exuberance, unnecessariness. Because isn’t responsible thinking about sensibility and sobriety? Shouldn’t it be about anything but clamoring for more, more, more?

This paradox is even more pronounced in brands like Skall Studio, which is based on all the right values, but only gets bigger and bigger. The Danish brand has declared from day one that they wanted to make a difference in relation to the traditional, destructive fashion industry. They started small in 2014 with shirts and a few other long-lasting staples, now they have annual, full collections, a children’s collection, and homeware, they are expanding with stores in Copenhagen and (soon) in Paris and they have, for a long time, held large and extremely attractive shows. Shows that find their raison d’être in strengthening the Skall universe; that show new fans that they can start here and confirm to existing fans that they just need to accessorise with that coat, those pants, that dress for the new season, and then style it this way and that way to still feel that they are part of their group of contemporaries, regardless of the fact that in some sense they try to avoid supporting a consumptive rush.

The AW24 show took place today at the Factory for Art and Design in Amager; one of the big show locations, and despite the always subdued, almost gentle Skall atmosphere, the J39 Chairs designed by Børge Mogensen was packed. The collection was titled ‘Letters’ – something created by thoughtful people who want to share their reflections with others at a pace where they don’t lose themselves: just like the Skall sisters, Julie and Marie. So, the name underlines exactly Skall’s paradox: to be an active part of one’s time, but also to slow it down a bit, to find the thoughtful depth in it rather than simply sticking to the fast, pleasure-driven surface.

Skall always has both classic-masculine and poetic-feminine styles and this time, the sisters have found inspiration in New York in the late 60s and two of the great, contemporary commentators, who both contain these slightly opposite sides in themselves, and both offer depth rather than surface, namely the author and writer Joan Didion (1934-2021) and the musician and poet Leonard Cohen (1934-2016).

The brand offered a catwalk that could have been upper Manhattan in the mid-late 60s, populated by black-clad intellectual librarians, philosophers and art students in three-quarter-length, classic wool coats, ankle-length skirts and loose-fitting trousers whilst efficiently walking with newspapers and moleskin notebooks in their hands. And yes, regular Skall fans will complement their wardrobe with the grey, tartan slim wool skirt, the elegant sand-coloured, floor-length kaftan and the grey-beige suit with wide leg trousers, while new fans, in addition to those styles, can go for new versions of the house’s classics such as the wool coat, the hand-knitted wide sweaters, the brilliant V-neck waistcoat (now with a deeper V and in cable knit) and the long blazers. All, of course, created with sustainable methods and recycled materials and supplemented with a styling that shows us that we can continue to use our existing wardrobe, as long as we know the codes of the coming autumn. One such seasonal feature was the collaboration with Kinraden – where Sarah Müllertz had been given free rein to create jewellery inspired by the architect Oscar Niemeyer and the sculptor Brancusi – which gave an elegant touch and emphasised Skall’s love of craftsmanship. Especially three smooth-polished, crooked-round silver brooches set on the V-neck waistcoat as large Pierrot buttons were a hit, making the beautiful waistcoat ready for a party. Because the clothes are there for our sake, not for anyone else’s. And suddenly expanding your wardrobe is no longer a paradox because aren’t we put on earth precisely to expand our minds? Thanks to Skall for continuing to inspire it.

See a selection of the show looks below and see the entire collection here.

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