As the curtains closed on Ann Demeulemeester’s romantic visions as a designer, Demeulemeester reminisced on her days spent in the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Belgium. What began as a fascination with the clothes that adorned subjects in paintings she studied led to a thirty-year dynasty of monochromatic serene clothing that existed in their own time. This was no different for her last menswear collection in the fall/winter of 2013. Known as the ‘punk priest’ collection, modern-day droogs engulfed the runway in bowler hats, asymmetrical tailored drapery, and military boots punk in nature. Elements of couture, such as curved, constructed sleeves, sometimes double-cuffed, were embedded in this masterpiece. This gothic-bohemian collection would go on to carry the chain of life Demeulemeester had formulated. Independent, powerful, uncontrived looks are a friendly reminder that Ann Demeulemeester will always follow her path.

Written by Leonardo Hurtado