P.O.W.
Fall/winter 2003

For POW Fall 2003, Andy Thê-Anh dreams a collection that swerves into neo-noir themes only to carom out genre-defiant, showing what plundering fun it can be to deconstruct. On top of that, he makes a ready to wear collection that looks more like made-to-measure.

"I love the glamour and mystique of the films noirs of the 40's and the 80's," explains Thê-Anh. "The challenge was to combine these and recreate it in a futuristic way, without being cartoonish or too vintage."

The femme fatales in the collection strike killer poses that slay with every twist, turn and iridescent shimmy. Metallic lamés and multi-hue bleeds form the colour scheme of such designer play, bursting from a fashionable collage of barely-there separates and midnight ensembles. The feminine debonair is not achieved through typical romantic means—leather strips are converted into a paillette skirt, looking every bit as fierce as the shark gill bolero. The plastified mohair coat is an example of the ‘texture on texture' that blasts this collection through the roof, like the plissé suede coat with its rubber prints and threadbare tentacles. The concept is deceptively simple: techno-eroticism needs new visual and tactile interfaces, a sentiment echoed by Fendi Fall 2003.

No matter how airborne his helium balloon gets, Andy Thê-Anh never completely lets go of the string—his paradigm for discipline and detail keeps silhouettes strong and the cinches where they should be.

The dauntless Thê-Anh explains both the risk and the necessity involved when an established designer shifts gears.

"After four seasons, people have begun to expect a certain look. But as a creator you have to always reinvent yourself, and this works out because fashion customers are always looking for new things."

"Most importantly, you have to enjoy your work "

Daniel Cox
Fashion Editor

photos courtesy of POW.

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