As I virtually watched the GANNI Spring/Summer 2022 runway live from Copenhagen Fashion Week overnight, I did so sitting in the same sweatpants I’ve worn all the week, under lockdown restrictions on the other side of the world. While much of the globe has enjoyed a sense of normality this summer (as I also did just a handful of months ago), a new phase of the pandemic in Sydney threatens to undo our new-found freedom. However, the cult Sandi brand stopped me mid existential crisis this morning, with a simple and much needed reminder of fun fashion.
“Spring Summer 2022 is all about reigniting our love for life and love for ourselves,” GANNI creative director, Ditte Reffstrup said of the collection. “Personally, I used the lockdown to look inwards. I know many people did that – thinking about what makes us feel good, what we miss from before and what we don’t want in our lives anymore. The collection is about saying ‘yes’ to what feels right, saying ‘yes’ to yourself. It’s about loving yourself, expressing yourself and being happy with who you are.
“But actually, what I love most about SS22 is how our design team came out of lockdown more together, stronger than ever. My team, the energy we have, it’s the reason I get excited on my bike cycling to work every morning.”
Entitled “Higher Love”, GANNI took the brief quite literally with the runway set atop Copenhill, a sky-grazing artificial ski slope above the Danish city. In a nod to the brand’s ongoing sustainability movement (the goal to have 100 percent responsible materials in all of its clothing) it is also fitting to note the grassy hill sits on top of a green power plant that burns waste instead of fossil fuel.
The forthcoming collection has been described as an “antidote” to locking down and staying home. Each glittering silhouette and intricate print has been created to be danced in and to be seen in. The label reprises some of its most loved silhouettes – peter pan collars, midi dresses and balloon sleeves – as well as welcoming a new wave of sophisticated tailoring.
Feminine style cues include the brand’s signature scrunchie and ruched detailing, deco silver buttons and intricate ‘Team GANNI’ branding throughout – an ode to the label’s ongoing community spirit. The color palette is of course bold; a mixture of tomato red, hot pink, bright blue, shades of lemon yellow and pale pink.
In uncertain times, fashion has never been so important.
