“RETROSPECTIVE 10”
The Rami Kadi couture collection for Spring/Summer 2021 marks the tenth anniversary of Rami Kadi Maison de Couture, and is thus a collection with a retrospective aspect.
“This decade has been a decade of experimentation, learning, and growth. We have explored themes ranging from the individual to the collective, inspiring ourselves from festivals, books, films, events, inanimate objects, and many others. During those ten years, we have been fortunate to receive the support of many celebrities and influencers, with whom we retain sincere relations, and to whom are utterly grateful. Similarly, the press has been a supportive force, featuring us in print and on screen, and to those people in the press industry we owe a great deal. As such, it is only natural that we should dedicate this collection to this ten-year mark, recalling key highlights and thanking all of the people who have worked with us.”
To this end, “Retrospective 10” consists exclusively of ten pieces, each of which harks back to a milestone dress, revisiting it or fusing it with another milestone design to bring out something new. In contrast with the chromatic boldness that usually typifies RK Maison de Couture, “Retrospective 10” bases itself on metallic colours such as gold, silver, platinum, and bronze.
In order to decide upon the dresses that we would base this collection upon, we dug into our archives and carried out research on our work over the past ten years. Ultimately, the selection process was based on two key criteria: signature status and endorsement. “Signature status” denotes a dress that can be easily recognised as Rami Kadi, whether in terms of cut, embroidery, or treatment; whilst “endorsement” denotes a dress that was worn by a major celebrity(ies), or that was met with popular or critical acclaim.
To mark this collection, RK Maison de Couture produced a video documentary featuring Rami Kadi as he walks us through each of the ten pieces. The documentary is a trip down the memory lane, reflecting upon key milestones in our ten-year journey, with the Creative Director recounting the story behind each base dress, how it was conceived and developed, and how it was revisited for the new collection, with an eye on its material and technique. The video can be accessed on the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBC27U-3ugM
“In this period, we have learnt so much on techniques in embroidery as well as other production aspects. I would describe these ten years as a lengthy process of trial and error, during which we have had some achievements bringing joy to our hearts, as well as some challenges from which we have learnt. We are using this opportunity to reflect on what it has been that has taken us so far in the fashion industry, and to see what the next frontier should be. We will continue to explore the social, ecological, and artistic dimensions of this magnificent human creation – the female dress.”