Last season Rolf Ekroth’s plans to finally take his collection on the road from Finland to France were foiled; this spring he was determined to go big or go home. “From a business side we need to grow, we need to get sales, we need to be more present where things happen,” Ekroth said on a Zoom. But playing safe was not in the cards for this former professional poker player. “Paris feels like it’s serious and then I made a very playful collection,” said the designer who also planned a rager, hosting an after-party rave at the Mia Mao club (capacity about 2,500) where the show was presented.
The collection was largely based around Ekroth’s ravenous appetite for pick-and-mix candy—sour skulls, Salmiak (salty) licorice, chewy gummy bears, and the like. He knit images of his favorite sweets into a Fair-Isle style sweater, and with collaborator Matilda Diletta created a print where candies are arranged in the pattern of a sailor’s tattoo.
The opening look, a raincoat and drainpipe-pleated skirt suitable for the unpredictable weather of Finnish summers, was made of a shimmering gold polyester that bore some resemblance to those noisy, crinkly candy wrappers with the twisted ends. It was topped off with the designer’s take on a fisherman’s cap which he gussied up with spiked cutouts that transformed it into a crown fit for a Candy King. (A name borrowed from a Finnish confectionery company.)
Combining functionality and fun, Ekroth’s designs are as difficult to place as they are to miss. Working mostly with Italian and Japanese fabrics, Ekroth brings an odd charm (his word for it is humor) to garments that are amalgamations of elements from technical gear, gorpcore, streetwear, uniforms, and rave culture, and which are always somehow connected, at least in the designer’s mind, to his home country.
This season, blazers, jackets, and pants feature dimensional pill- or Good & Plenty-shaped zipped pockets “originally conceived for extreme candy storage,” as the notes read. Gummy bear pendants swing from D-rings, shirts are hooded, and track pants and shorts are striped. The offish color combinations—like that seen on a mocha and peach anorak—are quite delicious. This season’s one-piece, a brand signature, is a silver-quilted number that resembles the packaging of the Finnish dairy company Valio (a partial sponsor of the show). Its butter, Ekroth explained, is favored by many high-end Parisian boulangeries. Who knew?
Paying homage to old-time couture traditions, the show ended with a bridal look for a groom. Cut in a ditzy pink, green, and ivory floral print, it paired side-striped, deeply gored, and pleated pants of ginormous proportions with a slightly Christo-style padded and backless top resembling an avant-garde life vest. Conditions for independent designers like Ekroth are always sink-or-swim; for all its curiosities this collection made a joyous splash. As such it offered symbolic relief from the extreme heat and real alternatives to too safe, bland designs.
