Astrid Andersen’s kimono clad sunset-hued Sumo gang stomped down the catwalk in unconventional silhouettes, to the sounds of TLC

Whilst last season saw a flurry of hyper-sexualised streetwear stomp down the catwalk, Astrid Andersen SS15 paid homage to Asian culture, sumo tradition and gender codes. Exploring her own curiosity with Asian culture, sparked by a recent visit to Japan, SS15 is a continuation of Andersen’s exploration of stereotypes concerning power and masculinity, this time through the dichotomies of the Sumo tradition.

Fierce in her approach, Andersen’s non-apologetic self-branded logos were gratified over luxurious fabrics in colour ways symbolic of far-away sunsets – tangerine, mandarin, raspberry and violet to be more precise. Aesthetics continued to clash when an illustrated paisley pattern was smattered upon mesh, velour and fur and when body-bandaged silhouettes took the lead. The collection saw boys wear feminine flesh baring lace, made masculine by the addition bold black Nike stomping shoes, equipped with calf-engulfing harnesses.

True to her trademark subverted American sportswear, trackpants were re-worked in crunchy plastic-like fabrics and sweatshirts were delivered in tangerine crushed velvet. The piece we’re just desperate to wear? Obviously the violet fur Sumo robe, that screamed Japanese wrestler meets Emperor’s New Groove.

Whilst the heady mix of testosterone infiltrated the air, remixes of TLC and Backstreet Boys rang through the space before Astrid’s sunset-hued kimono-clad Sumo gang united in formation to close the visual feast.

Words: Brooke McCord

Photography: Amy Beasley