picture by De Gournay
Travel, even through dreams: Drift and get carried away. The pandemic that distanced us from the outer world last spring, inspired AZZI & OSTA’s duo designers to escape closed doors through their unparalleled imagination transporting them to navigate the endless canals of Amsterdam. This obsessive escape was first centered around the tulip, its vivid colors, its fascinating frills and then extended to the infinite palette of colorful fields and the joy it sparked for the two creators to contribute to the enchantment their world.
The AZZI & OSTA Autumn Winter 2020-2021 collection has been overtaken by the shared passion of the two creators for Art History. Among the faille and the organza of silk, the crepe, the tulle, the lace and the velvet, the grandmasters of an imaginary museum were invited. The Lowlands took over with captivating charm like a spell infiltrating the collection’s fabric, with its colorful landscapes unleashing colors, happiness: Unleashing life.
‘Un Reve Flamant’ evoques optimism and hope. The collection was almost ready when the explosion at the Port of Beirut devastated the studio. Dedicating their new creations to their shattered city as much as to humanity disoriented by containment and the pandemic, AZZI & OSTA are committed more than ever to their mission to give shape to a bright future, and to bet on happy days.
The collection Rembrandt plays in the depth of black a golden chiaroscuro which complements velvet with velvet. Embroidery in golden threads, lit with pearls, are sown on an oversized jacket with large lapels, dropped shoulders and puffed sleeves reminiscent of the ‘Queen of night’ tulips, a fairyland where petals dragonflies and pineapples coexist in harmony. This sumptuous piece is accompanied by a black jumpsuit adorned with complementary patterns, ending with an imposing choker collar embroidered with crystals and baroque pearls. The whole is called “Rembrandt Gold”.
The blues in the collection are unmissable: ‘Porcelain blue’ is embodied in a sumptuous long dress with a ball petticoat and inlay of rigid hand-painted petals. ‘Letter to Vermeer’, a wide dress in powdered sky, in a contemporary silhouette offsetting its medieval flare with its mid-length, flared and embroidered sleeves, supported by a signature shoulder in large stylized knots. ‘North Sea’ the deep blue of the collection, an ultramarine jumpsuit embroidered with indigo tulips, extended by a cape lined with a stream of frilly blue tulle imitating the freedom of crushing waves …
‘Vincent’s Vase’, how can you go wrong with this immersion in the iconic ‘Vase of Roses’, a vibrant still life by Van Gogh where the painter applied a combination of the most beautiful greens to wrap the white-touched heckling of a disheveled bouquet. A couture tribute to this masterpiece is a three-piece, hourglass-cut silhouette reminiscent of a vase, carved out by a soft green peplum corset embroidered with silk organza flowers, topping an ankle-length skirt. The solids of green degrade into multiple textures. A 50s pleated train cape, held in place by a knotted belt, completes the ensemble with majesty.
The ribbon bow belt plays in this collection the role of a red thread borrowed, out of admiration, from the trompe-l’oeil of Samuel Van Hoogstraten, painter of the 17th C. known for its hyperrealistic assemblages of motley objects held by cords. Trompe-l’oeil elements appear through the collection in tactile collages inspired by Flemish tiles on a white organza coat.
La Maison d’Orange is represented by an asymmetrical dress cut in an abundance of silk faille from the bright orange of the ‘Orange princess’ tulip, short from the front and long from the back in an impressive ball gown dominated by an oversized top embroidered with shimmering crystals in a cross pattern.
New Beginnings
From the same spirit, white parrot tulip petals in organza and tulle imitate a bouquet of feathers on a sculptural dress in translucent Chantilly lace, embroidered with patterns of branches and stems on which sparkles a dew of crystals. A heavy cream satin train sculpts the shoulders and long sleeves, emphasizing on the richness of the piece like a frame. The ‘White Parrot’ set is part of a small series of wedding dresses created in the spirit of renewal and joy that underlies the collection. One, with a short corset and butterfly sleeves in white satin, flares out in tulle to the ground under a shower of silk petals. The other is a tulle sheath embroidered with tulip motifs sprinkled with gold under an imposing pleated tulle drop, highlighted by a large pastel pink bow. The last is a flow of transparent white tulle exceeding a petticoat of corolla tulle, short in front, long from the back, structured by an embroidered corset. Finally, mimicking the final chapter from an Andersen tale, ‘Gold dust’, the ultimate wedding dress, at the crossroads of dreams and traditional know-how, bare shoulders, pointed neckline, puffed Julliette sleeves, draped diagonally over the bust and waist, rain of tulips veined with light gold on ivory silk, embroidery of threads and gold chains concentrated on the corset then further scattered, accompanying a slow fall of petals on the princess skirt to the hem… More than a motif, the tulip is here a lucky charm and a talisman.