Memory and nostalgia are imperfect but seductive forces, and Lisa Kessler corralled them both when designing her solid debut collections (spring and resort 2023) for Filippa K. A German-Finn, Kessler leaned on her own childhood memories of nature-filled summers in Scandinavia at the same time that she explored the company’s extensive archive. The first look, a pair of cropped white stretch jeans with gold button details, was a reinterpretation of a 2006 design. The company was founded in 1993 and there are plenty of references from that era as well, some specific to the archive, like a long jersey dress. Other designs seemed to owe something to Helmut Lang, whose work has had a shadow presence in the spring 2023 menswear collections.
Previous to becoming the first successor to co-founder Filippa Knuttson at Filippa K, Kessler had been senior designer of flou for Anthony Vaccarello at Saint Laurent. Those looking for traces of the designer’s past might point at the snappy smokings that closed out the collection, one worn over a sheer, floaty tunic, and a lone neo-Renaissance dress. Otherwise the looks ping-ponged between casual wear and tailoring. An asymmetric maillot-inspired top worn with brown leather jeans was pleasingly precise; yak was used to create knitted “sweatsuits” with leather pockets. Tailored jackets had wide shoulders, and shorts were cut small and high, as was a midriff-baring sweater vest paired with tuxedo pants.
If the collections’ denim and jersey themes originated in the archive, its minimalism had roots both in the brand and Kessler’s youth. From Back Home, a book of photographs by Anders Petersen and J.H. Engström, provided the framework for Kessler’s thinking; the collection is full of modular pieces that can be worked into an existing wardrobe. Broderie anglaise tops, inspired by the square-patterned tops found in books of regional dress, along with furry clogs, acknowledged Filippa K’s Swedish roots. Overall, the collection put out a welcome mat to anemoiacs who are aligned with idealized ’90s and ’00s aesthetics, who want to build a subtly sexy minimalist look that meets the needs of today.
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