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OWENSWIKI

SS20 TECUATL

MEN

CREDITS

  • CASTING: AM CASTING (CLM)
  • MAKEUP: KARIM RAHMAN (OPEN TALENT PARIS)
  • HAIR: DUFFY (STREETERS)
  • PRODUCTION: LA MODE EN IMAGES
  • MUSIC: ‘ACCELERATION’ BY LAVASCAR WITH LIVE PERFORMANCE BY OMAN CUEZALIN RIOS, XICO XAVIER GARZA, HUITZOMITL, AND JAEL MINO OCELOTL RIVERA

NOTES

NAMED AFTER MY GRANDMOTHER’S MIXTEC MAIDEN NAME. I’VE BEEN MOTIVATED TO EXPLORE MY PERSONAL MEXICANNESS AS A REACTION TO THE U.S. PRESIDENT’S FIXATION ON A BORDER WALL.

COLLAB WITH UNITED FARM WORKERS ASSOCIATION… I WAS RAISED IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA BY AN ANGLO FATHER AND NATIVE MEXICAN MOTHER. MY MOTHER AND I LEARNED ENGLISH TOGETHER WHEN SHE STARTED TAKING ME TO NURSERY SCHOOL.

MY FATHER WORKED IN THE PORTERVILLE PUBLIC COURT SYSTEM AS A TRANSLATOR FOR THE MEXICAN MIGRANT FARM WORKERS THAT WERE A MAJOR PART OF THE SAN JOAQUIN AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY. AWARENESS OF THE AZTEC EAGLE ON THE UNITED FARM WORKERS FLAG AND THE STRUGGLES IT REPRESENTED WAS A PART OF MY GROWING UP.

THE UNITED FARM WORKERS ASSOCIATION HAS KINDLY ALLOWED ME TO USE THEIR LOGO FOR THIS COLLECTION, WITH PROCEEDS FROM OUR COLLABORATION BENEFITING THEIR CONTINUING EFFORTS. FLAG GRAPHICS ARE USED ON T-SHIRTS AND OVERSHIRTS THAT WILL BE SOLD VIA OUR E-COMMERCE SITE. COLLAB WITH THOMAS HOUSEAGO… WHEN I REALIZED MY RUNWAY SHOW WOULD LITERALLY BE REVOLVING AROUND HIS SCULPTURE INSTALLED IN THE PALAIS DE TOKYO FOUNTAIN, I ASKED HIM IF HE WOULD LIKE TO EXTEND HIS INFLUENCE FURTHER INTO THE COLLECTION. INTERESTINGLY, HE HAD BEEN THINKING OF BORDER WALLS AND AZTEC HIEROGLYPHICS AS WELL AND ALLOWED ME TO USE ONE OF HIS WALL SCULPTURES AS OUR INVITE ART.

I ASKED TO HAVE SOME OF HIS L.A. STUDIO CLAY SHIPPED TO PARIS TO USE ON THE RUNWAY, REFERENCING HIS PERFORMANCE VIDEO IN HIS MUSÉE D’ART MODERNE SHOW… AFTER MY RUNWAY SHOW, THE CLAY WILL GO TO L’ÉCOLE DES BEAUX-ARTS TO BE USED BY STUDENTS IN THE SCULPTING DEPARTMENT.

A SELECTION OF HOUSEAGO LABELED GARMENTS AND RUNNERS ARE MEGALACED WITH A BLACK WAX OR A WHITE WAX FINISH, ECHOING THE TEXTURES OF HIS WORK COLLAB WITH VEJA — THE MOST ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY SNEAKER BRAND I COULD FIND (TO QUOTE MYSELF, “I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO AUTHORITY TO PROMOTE SUSTAINABILITY, BUT I DO ENDORSE THE IDEA OF THOUGHTFUL LIVING AND PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE WITH KINDNESS IN MIND. WE ALL GOTTA START SOMEWHERE”.) OUR COLLAB CONTINUES WITH A NEW HIKING SNEAKER IN GREYSCALE AND ASYMMETRICAL DETAILS.

COLLAB WITH CHAMPION — I REMEMBER MY COUSINS WEARING CHAMPION TEES AND SHORTS WHEN WE USED TO GO VISIT THE FAMILY IN MEXICO IN THE SEVENTIES… HERE I HAVE TURNED THOSE SPORTS CLOTHES INTO TOGAS, LOINCLOTHS AND BRIEFS…..CHAMPION KINDLY ACCEPTED DOING THEIR LOGO IN BLACK, WHITE, AND GREY AND WE HAVE SPRINKLED IT LIBERALLY OVER A CAPSULE INCLUDING T-SHIRTS, SWEATS, AND WINDBREAKERS.

I CONTINUE WITH A SHARP-SHOULDERED TAILORED SILHOUETTE, AT TIMES COVERED IN BRIGHT SEQUINS LIKE THE FOLKLORIC CHINA POBLANA SKIRTS MY MOM WORE IN SCHOOL PAGEANTS GROWING UP IN PUEBLA, MEXICO. BLAZERS HAVE INTEGRATED STRAPS TO PEEL JACKETS OFF AND WEAR BUCKLED AROUND THE HIPS ON THE DANCE FLOOR. BLAZERS AND LIGHT COATS ARE WORN OVER ZIPPERED JUMPSUITS OR FULL HIGH WAISTED ZIPPERED CARGO SHORTS. FABRICS ARE IRISÉ COATED CANVAS, MEMBRANE RUBBERIZED NYLONS, PAPER-THIN SNAKE, COTTON DUCHESSE, AND NYLON TAFFETA. FOOTWEAR INCLUDES GLAM PLATFORM BOOTS IN CLEAR PLEXI, AFOREMENTIONED MEGALACED SNEAKERS, OR EARTHY SANDALS IN COW FUR.

MUSIC IS AN EXTENDED REMIX OF ‘ACCELERATION’ BY LAVASCAR, MY BEAUTIFUL WIFE MICHELE LAMY’S BAND WITH NICO VASCELLARI AND DAUGHTER SCARLETT ROUGE (LAMY/VASCELLARI/SCARLETT), PRODUCED BY ROCCO RAMPINO. I INVITED MUSICIANS FROM MEXICO TO ACCOMPANY LAVASCAR’S TRACK WITH DANZA AZTECA CEREMONIAL MUSIC THAT THEY HAVE LEARNED FROM THEIR ELDERS. VOCALS ARE IN THE TRADITIONAL NAHUATL AZTEC LANGUAGE “TECUATL NONAN, AMIXPANZINCO ONCAN NOYOLO.

CUICATL ANYOLQUEH XOCHITL ANCUEPONQUE” “LORDESS OF WATER, HERE IN FRONT OF YOUR HONORABLE GAZE, IS MY HEART. YOU KNOW THIS LIFE SONG YOU HAVE LAID OUT YOURSELF LIKE FLOWERS…”

WOMEN

CREDITS

  • CASTING: AM CASTING (CLM)
  • MAKEUP: KARIM RAHMAN (OPEN TALENT PARIS)
  • HAIR: DUFFY (STREETERS)
  • PRODUCTION: LA MODE EN IMAGES
  • MUSIC: EXCLUSIVE MIX BY GAGE FEATURING POBRE CORAZÓN BY MARÍA FÉLIX

NOTES

NAMED AFTER MY GRANDMOTHER’S MIXTEC MAIDEN NAME. I NEVER REALLY EXPLORED MY MEXICAN-NESS BUT THE DEBATE OVER A BORDER WALL MADE ME MORE CONSCIOUS OF WHO I WOULD BE SEPARATED FROM.

WHEN I WAS A KID, MY DAD WOULD DRAG MY MOM AND ME TO A RUN-DOWN MEXICAN MOVIE THEATRE IN OUR SMALL TOWN THAT CATERED TO THE MIGRANT FARM WORKERS WHO POPULATED OUR AREA… HE WAS WHITE AND MOM WAS MEXICAN AND HE WORKED IN THE PORTERVILLE PUBLIC COURT SYSTEM AS A SPANISH TO ENGLISH TRANSLATOR DEFENDING THE WORKERS RIGHTS.

MARÍA FÉLIX WAS THE DIETRICH OF MEXICAN CINEMA AND USUALLY PLAYED A STRONG AND DEFIANT WOMAN IN A MALE DOMINATED SOCIETY. IRL, SHE LATER MOVED TO PARIS AND AMASSED A LEGENDARY CARTIER JEWELRY COLLECTION.

I ASKED TECHNO WIZARD GAGE TO DO A CUSTOM RUNWAY MIX USING HER VOCALS FROM A SONG FROM ONE OF THOSE MOVIES, REPEATING THE PHRASE “CORAZON, TU DIRAS LO QUE HACEMOS” … MY HEART, YOU DECIDE WHAT WE DO…

AFTER LEAVING THE BAUHAUS AND GERMANY IN THE 1930S, JOSEF AND ANNI ALBERS EXPLORED ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES IN MEXICO. THEIR REDUCTIVE MODERNISM APPLIED TO PYRAMIDS AND HIEROGLYPHICS IS A PRECEDENT TO THE LINEAR MOTIFS USED HERE IN SHOULDER STRAPS ON DRESSES AND MEGA-LACING ON DUCHESSE BOMBERS… KNIT DRESSES ALSO TRACE THE BODY IN GEOMETRIC PLANES AND LINES, SLASHED TO REVEAL THE BODY BRAZENLY OR VEILED WITH THE THINNEST COTTON T-SHIRTS.

LUIS BARRAGÁN’S SATURATED BLASTS OF STRONG HUES INFORM THE COLOR STORY — PINK, YELLOW, WHITE, BLACK, RED — CRISP, UNCOMPLICATED, STRAIGHTFORWARD, AND UNASHAMEDLY EARNEST.

I ASKED MASK ARTISANS WINTERCROFT TO SCULPT METALLIC ALIEN AZTEC CROWNS THAT MIGHT HAVE COME FROM A FRITZ LANG MOVIE. THEY ARE WORN WITH OUR NEW SUNGLASS SHAPE THAT REMINDS ME OF THE EAST L.A. LOWRIDERS I REMEMBER FROM MY YOUTH THERE. DOES THAT CULTURE STILL FLOURISH? I DON’T KNOW, HAVEN’T BEEN BACK TO L.A. IN 18 YEARS…

I CONTINUE WITH A SHARP-SHOULDERED SILHOUETTE, AT TIMES COVERED IN BRIGHT SEQUINS LIKE THE FOLKLORIC CHINA POBLANA SKIRTS MY MOM WORE IN CHURCH PAGEANTS GROWING UP IN PUEBLA, MEXICO. BLAZERS AND OVERSHIRTS HAVE INTEGRATED STRAPS TO PEEL THEM OFF AND WEAR BUCKLED AROUND THE HIPS ON THE DANCE FLOOR. THERE IS ALSO FOLKLORIC VOLUME IN MANTLES AND COATS THAT ARE SIMPLE AND OVERSIZED IN SMOOTH, TURBO-STUDDED SILK OR DELIRIOUSLY MEGA-PLEATED IN STURDY, COLORFUL MATTE COTTONS.

FABRICS INCLUDE MY FAVORITE COTTON CANVASES, THIS TIME COATED IN A BEETLE WING IRIDESCENCE, COTTON DUCHESSE, SILK CREPES, AND GLITTERY GLOW-MESH (!). THE BROKEN STRIPE I OFTEN REPEAT IS HERE RENDERED AS THE TRADITIONAL MEXICAN REBOZO.

PLATFORM BOOTS HAVE BEEN STRETCHED INTO A FUTURISTIC COWBOY BOOT SHAPE WITH A CLEAR HEEL. AND THE UBIQUITOUS BUM BAG HAS BEEN TWISTED INTO A SCULPTURAL FLOURISH JUTTING OUT AT THE PELVIS.

A FLEET OF BUBBLE ARTISTS JOIN US TO FILL THE SPACE WITH SMALL AND JUMBO BUBBLES GIVING THE AFFAIR A BUCOLIC LIGHTHEARTEDNESS I ASSOCIATE WITH THE MEXICO I USED TO KNOW.

STOIC BAUHAUS AZTEC PRIESTESSES IN AN ART DECO VALHALLA FILLED WITH BUBBLES ANIMATED BY FANTASIA ERA DISNEY…