PREEN S/S 2012

PREEN

SPRING/SUMMER 2012

PHOTOS: STEPHAN MOSKOVIC

TEXT: JANELLE OKWODU

CASTING: NOAH SHELLEY FOR AM CASTING

HAIR: PAUL HANLON

MAKEUP: VAL GARLAND

PRODUCER: JULIETTE LARTHE

Preen never fails to deliver, with each collection Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi expand the horizon of their brand with a fresh round of creativity. Spring finds the duo in a feminine mood, with soft colors and sculpted shapes combining to create a refined yet daring look. Pastels and prints are de rigueur on the runways this season, but no one is doing them like Preen. Their mix of pixels and hand drawn patterns is completely original and after a seemingly endless stream of NYFW shows that felt culled from the ghosts of collections past, it is nice to see designers who value uniqueness over familiarity.

For all the uniqueness there are a few historical allusions – Thornton and Bregazzi were inspired by The Bloomsbury set, an English group of intellectuals that included Virginia Woolf and E.M. Forster. Rather than making their literary reference overt, they let the artistic spirit of that group’s dynamic influence things subtly. As we all know, Preen is a thinking woman’s fashion line, as pretty as things get on the runway it is the substance and skillful technique found in each piece that keeps fans coming back for more.