September 19, 2020: For Burberry’s Spring/Summer 2021 show ‘In Bloom’, Chief Creative Officer Riccardo Tisci takes the house’s most recognizable emblems and motifs and remasters them with a modern, flamboyant imagination.
The collection is an interplay between natural elements like the sea as well as a multifaceted view of Britain – simultaneously rural and urban, spanning earth and ocean, always expressing freedom.
Conceptualized as a modern mythology inspired by the sea, the contemporary reimagination blends Burberry’s heritage perfectly. The palette, while immersed in a spectrum of blue tones, is accented with sandy Burberry beige and mariner orange.
Womenswear reflects the juxtaposition of the mystical and the natural; strong and delicate, hard and soft, with the elegant details of tulle and chiffon, fishnets studded with crystals, allegorical prints and artworks. Menswear draws from the rugged elegance and practicality of the wardrobes of seafarers with rubberised finishes, hardy denim and Thomas Burberry’s gabardine. The signature Burberry trench coat has been redesigned with sculptural loop-back and cut-out styles as well as expanding to a full-length coat cross-bred with contrast tails of denim.
Describing his inspiration, Ricardo Tisci comments, “It began with a thought of British summertime; embracing the elements with a trench coat on the beach mixing with the sand and the water. I envisioned the people of this space, like the lighthouse keeper, and a love affair between a mermaid and a shark, set against the ocean, then brought to land. The circle is hugely symbolic – regrowth, renewal, the circle of life. The collection is called In Bloom because I was thinking about regeneration, about dynamic youth, about nature constantly recreating itself, always growing and evolving, always alive. Water is a symbol of that also – of newness, freshness and cleansing. And through water, life grows – water is what allows nature to bloom. Everything is circular. The collection is focused and refined – one vision, one story. This is the essence of both Burberry’s identity and my own creativity. Reaffirming the codes of Burberry – my codes of Burberry, our DNA.”
The Burbery Spring/Summer 2021 show experience, staged for a digital audience on Twitch, is conceived as an expression of freedom. Collaborating with artist Anne Imhof, known for her endurance art, the digital experience shows a setting that combines British, fairytalesque forest with raw, urban elements. Musician Eliza Douglas’ performs a unique, real-time soundtrack blurring the boundaries between art, fashion and live events.
Lofty and vibrant, Burberry’s new collection is a modern celebration of its British heritage and most treasured symbols.
