What’s Mine Is Yours

For Alessandra Rich’s SS27 presentation, the conventional catwalk was replaced by something much more intimate: a pink-themed dressing room that contextualised the collection’s pieces amongst desultorily placed jewellery, photography and art. Guests were invited to sit, touch and move through the space, surrounded by the things that Alessandra keeps close.

“I was in the mood of, ‘what is mine is yours,’” Alessandra explained. “I wanted to share things that go beyond my presentation.” Evident on every wall was the designer’s longstanding love of art: works by Alma Berrow, Anissa Kermiche, Polina Osipova, Veronica Smirnoff, Alexandra Gordienko and Guen Fiore were dotted throughout the two rooms, alongside pieces from Alessandra’s own collection, which were strewn over a chair or on the wardrobe door. Rather than a decorative backdrop to compliment the clothes, the works served as an extension of the collection: these were artists she knows, has worked with or has collected over the years.

“This is a very messy room,” Alessandra said, gesturing to an antique-looking screen adorned with occasion dresses and nightwear alike. Rather than a showroom it looked like a boudoir caught in the middle of getting ready: dresses optioned for the night ahead, jewellery left within reach and glimpses of the woman who might wear them. To emphasise this, models moved between rooms like live mannequins, trying on different pieces at their (or Alessandra’s) whim. 

The pieces followed suit. For the SS27 collection, Alessandra moved between different versions of femininity, from pieces she described as “definitely seductive” to softer, more romantic looks. The collection shifted easily between high shine and delicate softness, with each look bringing out a different side to the woman wearing it. There was glamour, there was innocence, and plenty in between.

The title of the collection, Pink Fury, unabashedly speaks to the kind of contradiction that runs through the collection: a form of femininity that can be romantic, glamorous, playful and furious. “I think every woman has a Pink Fury,” Alexandra said. The title, she admits, originated with the furry, pink pouffe which dominated the first room, and developed its meaning from there. 

That was what made the presentation work: nothing was kept at a safe distance. By opening up what is hers, Alessandra made it ours, if only for an afternoon.