When I saw the runway set before the Prada show began, it was all monochromatic with a brown plank-like runway. I thought to myself, if this is any clue at all to what’s in store for SS13, I’m guessing that there will be lots of monochromaticism. And indeed, when the show began half an hour later than scheduled, the opening look (and subsequent looks after) were all in black and white with Sakura (Japanese cherry blossom) flower details. It was only later than other colours such as deep greens started popping up on the runway.

From the very first look that opened the show, it was quite obvious that Miuccia’s Spring/Summer 2013 collection was Japanese-inspired. While the Sakura was one of the tell-tale signs, nothing confirmed this more than the geisha-like clogs on the models’ feet. What I really didn’t get was the socks that seemed to be disguised as sandals with patent leather bows, but upon closer inspection, the lack of soles on them confirmed my suspicions: that they were indeed socks. Really, now?!
The clothes, with all the floral details, and especially the Pop Art-esque florals at once reminded me of Japanese labels  Comme des Garçons and Tsumori Chiasato – see the Japanese inspiration again? In terms of the silhouette, the origami-esque folds on the coats definitely seemed like a modernist interpretation of the kimono.

And on to the bags..

The Verdict: The floral bags were definitely quirky. As a whole, though, and this is coming from someone who loves quirky and whimsical details, I really didn’t like it, along with the structured shapes for SS13. The evening bags (the ones sans flowers at least) were very delicate and dainty and were the ones that redeemed the SS13 bag collection (well, as much as they could anyway). In fact, when I was watching the Prada SS13 show, and those of you who follow me on Twitter would remember me saying that I really had no words for this collection except “shock”. Yes, I really was in shock, and I guess that since Miuccia was going for that modernist 60s vibe, then she really did achieve what she set out to do because that was what the modernist era was all about – to “shock”. Remember Marcel Duchamp and his inverted urinal which he called Art? Yup, that’s exactly my reaction after watching the Prada show when the audience saw his exhibit – that of speechlessness.

Images via Style.com