Jil Sander - SS27
Jil Sander - Spring 2027 Ready-To-Wear Collection
By Simone Bellotti
How do you solve a problem like minimalism? That’s what Simone Bellotti sees as the task set out for him at Jil Sander: “That idea of perfection at Jil—it’s not enough today, because you can find that in many other places. Minimalism has become so mainstream.” Bellotti is right about that. Blame the flatness of the internet, or recessionary impacts, or our search for simplicity in a chaotic world: Whether you look high or look low, you’ll see a lot of sameness and plainness in the market.
Bellotti’s idea, first touched upon last season and now more fully expressed, is to add something that’s “a bit wrong in a way,” or a note of imprecision. “It’s not a new concept,” he said, “but at Jil I think it’s interesting. I like the movement.”
He explained that he built the spring collection like a wave. If the beginning and end were pieces that Sander herself might recognize—a collarless black leather coat dress at the start and a jacket, splay-collared shirt, and slightly flared pants at the end—its apex was more unruly. The disruptions took the form of jackets and coats that gripped and gathered around the midsection, or trapezed out below a pair of buttons placed high at the chest. A pair of blazers, one for women, the other for men, came with a sort of perma-rumple, as if their wearers had gotten caught in a stiff breeze or just come from a tumble in bed. Note the too-large collars of the shirts that stuck out above the jackets’ lapels. There’s a dash of perversity to applying such rigorous technique to something so off. Bellotti seemed pleased with the effect.
After the crescendo came the release. Dresses with expansive, wafting volumes will be more legible to a wider audience, in particular a pretty yellow number that looked like it was made with draped and wrapped taffeta bedsheets. Bellotti might just tempt a maximalist with that one. But you get the sense that he enjoys the odd, understated little details just as much. A slip dress’s ruffles looked like they’d been pressed flat between the pages of a large book, as did the pencil skirt with the Japanese landscape that counted as the collection’s sole print. With asymmetrical vamps, extreme cutouts, and adjustable flaps arcing over the toes, the shoes were a tad weird, too—just how Bellotti’s growing fan base likes them.
The guiding force of water courses through the show's scenography, emerging as a formidable wave and its shore — a universal connection across cultures.
Source: Jil Sander / jilsander.com
Vogue / vogue.com
Video: Jil Sander / youtube.com