Six months before John Galliano stole the fashion’s world intention with his Belle Époque-inspired Spring/Summer 2024 Haute Couture collection for Maison Margiela, burgeoning Danish designer Nicklas Skovgaard had offered his interpretation of the porcelain dolls that defined the era. What next then for the Danish wunderkind, who took his signature timeslot to open the Fall/Winter 2024 season of Copenhagen Fashion Week?
Like catnip of It Girls, his drop waists and bubble skirts have made his eponymous label fodder for Internet headlines, often (and rightfully so) appearing in lists and cheat sheets about the emerging designers to have on your radar. Skovgaard’s sophomore collection cemented the autodidact’s talent not as a fiery star on the rise, but as a burning inferno of talent and artistry blazing a trail of pure poetry.
In only his eighth collection, Skovgaard offered up a coup de théâtre—or theatrical trick—for the Copenhagen set. (Guests ranged from tastemakers to local talents like Ganni’s Ditte Reffstrup) Commencing the fanfare with 80s synths, Skovgaard rationalised the absurdist with the habitual. In turn, evoking a collection that marries fantasy with reality for those who want to dream, but also want something to wear day-to-day.
Billowing from Skovgaard’s imagination, the garments protruded with an inflated sense of confidence that underpinned the presentation—a quiet sense of honing his craft. This beckoned from the outset in a tiered balloon dress crafted from slick oil-like leather or an asymmetrical camel suede dress featuring collapsed shoulders and a cropped midsection. Lines sliced the body on the diagonal in low-rise, floor-grazing skirts forged from a panel of leather and wrapped cotton or sparkle knits that delicately slice away from the skin.
Metallic goo and soft cotton gathered in delicious draping that cuffed the body in a way that would tug on the ribbons of adherents of the office siren aesthetic. In this sense, the nouveau corporate silhouette put forward by Skovgaard felt very trend-forward. Bureaucratic greys—both in matte and chrome—mingled with oversized tops that soften the structure of boardroom cliches. Fitting considering Melanie Griffith’s Tess McGill from 1988’s Working Girl was the centrepiece on the moodboard.
This approach, especially when adding rigid piping along the neckline and hem, also read Tudorish, placing Skovgaard’s aesthetic in an era of his own.
Grounding this collection was the delicious choreography. Eschewing a straightforward walk, models mingled with the audience, posed, danced and played. A model walked the runway with a piece of fruit. Toying with a banana, she titillatingly took a bite as she abetted the next model, dressed in a genius concoction of gold lame and silken jersey, onto the fur podium. One, wearing an ivory-draped set, filmed herself in situ on the catwalk. Others blew kisses to one another and lunged in leather pants.
On their feet was a first for the brand—Skovgaard-designed shoes. The 29-year-old approached this new category with reverence for Queen Margrethe II—who recently abdicated the throne. Pulling from her favourite craft, papier mâché, Skovgaard embellished the heels with watercolour ruffles and ornamental frills. A fresh yet familiar energy permeated from every corner of the room. As the voice of Róisín Murphy echoed over the room, crooning “Oxytoxin’s flowin’ ever into my brain”, the overpowering sense of what’s still to come in Skovgaard’s career was set in motion. A brand that boosts serotonin, indeed.
