story by Dana Varon
phots by Ned & Aya Rosen
Rad Hourani is rad. He considers himself an artist, not just of one craft, but of many, which is evident not only in his clothing designs but his photos, videos, exhibits and other projects. His entity is clearly a multi-sensory experience of sight, touch, sound and smell. Often experimenting with gender, shapes, and form in his designs, he has stated, “I like the idea of a world where we can live and shape ourselves, only by observing, each on our own.”
Hourani’s Fall 2011 collection plays with the option of enabling one to shape their own world on their body. Known for extending beyond traditional limits, he pushes them to create new barrier breaking ideas. His clothing offers another way to look at fashion and how it is worn. This season offers even more shapes and a bit more looseness, through still impeccable and interesting cuts.
Featuring just six pieces in shades of grey seems minimalist, but is not what it seems. “It is minimalist but also complex,” said the designer. These six pieces can be worn in twenty-six different ways; layered, tucked, wrapped, draped, and zipped, on male or female. Low leather platform shoes, leather stripped ones that the designer himself was wearing, were also shown on both genders, with smock like tied pieces, some that bustled and some that hung structurally down, some more asymmetrical and some in symmetry. Fabrics looked both matte and sheen, crisp and loose. Clean wool and fabric coats and jackets, long and short, with wide triangular collars, skirts, shorts and tops (many containing panels and slits), and hand covering sleeves adorned his models, which made each outfit look fresh and “intriguing,” another aspect important to his vision.
