Nensi Dojaka RTW Spring 2023
Nensi Dojaka recently received a book of Jean-Paul Goude’s work as a present and it was the starting point for her fine spring collection. One could easily see how the graphic designer’s images of Grace Jones, hacked up and recomposed to extend the singer’s already unreal proportions, would set Dojaka’s imagination racing.
Her lingerie-meets-LBD method certainly attenuates and elongates the torso. You have to marvel at the empowering effect of her delicate, Art Nouveau-esque corsetry; the bust area accruing pretty, butterfly-like collages of fabric and texture.
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It’s also impressive to see how quickly the Albanian womenswear designer, winner of the 2021 LVMH Prize for Young Designers, has become a pillar of the London schedule, able to pack out a vast photo studio early on a Sunday morning.
She sticks to her guns, that Goude book providing an impulse and overall mood, while the real work takes place on a mannequin. On these, Dojaka composes her intricate bodices with wiring, dainty straps, ruffles, hearts and now metallic elements, too. These were married to gossamer pants, filmy skirts edged in delicate lace, or a flaring, swishy circle style.
Backstage, Dojaka said she experimented more with Lurex, sequins and other wet-look surfaces this season. These climaxed with the fishtail finale gowns, the trains dusted with big, iridescent sequins. These should be in hot demand next spring, when Disney’s new live-action version of “The Little Mermaid” gets its theatrical release.
Handsome two-tone jeans and bits of mannish tailoring were a foil to all the clinging jersey and swimsuit-like tops, but felt like an afterthought.
As a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II, whose funeral is scheduled Monday, Dojaka laid out a carpet of white hydrangeas and placed a sprig on each seat.
Launch Gallery: Nensi Dojaka RTW Spring 2023