AW17 MAIN COLLECTION

Designer Tuomas Merikoski investigates long-term core ideals such as classicism, sustainability and utilitarianism for this fifth AALTO collection. Merging resistance, subculture and fantasy, AALTO draws on this symbolism to create uniforms for the yet to be born travellers, and the next generation of great explorers, and resilient women who navigate their own course, seen in the airbrushed fantasy prints within the collection.

The collection's vision of the future has echoes from the Blade Runner juxtaposing the old and the new; creating a quasi-chaotic aesthetic, as opposed to a future that is sterile and dehumanised as seen in Gattaca, another film that has had a strong influence on the collection. A strong sartorial slant interplays with the volume and choice of materials, arriving at a punk energy, contrasted again with the classical concept of 'uniform' and the utilisation of technical fabrics from the world of skiing, mountaineering and trekking.

Colours vary from dark, classic browns and greys to bright punk red or intense yellow and nude tones. Stripes are prominent and varied, from the rigid pin stripe to a multicolour swirl. Brushed mohair comes in lean, long coats and jaquard knits, whilst classic tailoring can be seen in the micro-drawing, retro satin structures and classic chalk stripes. Emerald green is a key season highlight, used as a representation of youth, as a symbol of love, and hpe and renewal and growth. It is also a touch of primary eco-colour, a symbol of a future, evergreen world. The 'Paradise Lost' fantasia prints present a Lapland of naturist women in harmony with their surrondings, as a nod to the matriarchical societies of pre history, using the computerized airbrush technique commissioned Finnish artist Sami Saramäki.