Berlin fashion week finally decided to dust off Thomas Hanisch after nearly a decade off the runway. He clearly had the time to get the work done, and it showed. Although the runway hasn’t exactly been in his best interest all those years, Lady Gaga has. And half of the drag and underground performance scene the city can’t get enough of, think Amanda Lepore, Hungry, and the list goes on. Which, for an avant garde designer tells you a lot. Namely, that he’s really, really, good.
@thomashanisch via Instagram
Hanisch found his way back through ‘Exos’, a collection rooted in the animal kingdom. Horns, feathers, shells, skin, all the things we fear, which really are nothing more than armor. A kind of everyday kit for navigating life as part of the LGBTQ+ community, now exhibited for our collective delight. Straight out of nature’s own wardrobe too. Protection and attention aren’t opposites though, they’re the ultimate form of empowerment. Just like the couture.
The majority of the looks felt like John Galliano’s and Pat McGrath’s Margiela “dolls” got lost in Berghain, in the best way possible. Strong, sculpted silhouettes adored volume, and the volume returned the favor, hugging waists, necks, and shoulders, reminding us of 18th century structure. Feathers, harmless in theory, looked like pointy little weapons. Some dresses revealed nothing at all, not even arms, while others seemed to have been designed with the single goal of exposing everything. Lace became second skin, draping over faces, while wigs took on lives of their own, my favorite actually looked like a giant loofah bath sponge. Tentacles were presented to us as a 3D printed necklace, then reappeared as a necklace again, then a choker for change, and later resurfaced as earrings. But for the gloves, I’ll admit I was fully unprepared, and delighted. Everything came in manipulated fabric, reworked leather, sensory faux fur, black, white, and deep red. Like a night out in Berlin. Strange, bold, a little terrifying, and exactly what we needed.
