“I came across that iconic photo of Kate Moss at Glastonbury in the ’90s — the one with the shorts and boots,” said R13’s Chris Leba, pointing to a pair of the coolest platform wellies he designed for the brand’s spring collection.
“I’m also into this gorpcore thing. So we thought, let’s take those ideas and put them into the R13 blender,” he added of the assortment of edged up platform hiking boots.
For spring his inspiration flowed through the collection with an upped ante of utility details, and could also be seen through the look book imagery, which featured models traipsing through the music festival.
“We flew to Glastonbury, we got all the models and we shot for a week. Either that or I sat in front of the computer for weeks to make it,” Leba said.
Here’s a little secret — half of the R13 spring look book (everything but the ready-to-wear and accessories) was generated through AI by Leba.
But back to the clothes — no AI generated program could capture the details and edgy silhouettes that Leba crafts each season. Once again he took heritage and classic silhouettes and “flipping it on its head” with technical manipulations.
A new detail spotted on easy blazers, shorts and oversize pants was Leba’s technique of building bellows into the garments’ interiors, giving roundness to each shape. The idea was mimicked with extended and exaggerated utility pockets while double belt loop bottoms could be worn high or slung low. The strong assortment of classic jeans (low-rise is still going strong at R13, as are their signature crossover, drop-crotch and jacket styles) and utility pants came in an array of neutral and indigo Italian linens and, of course, denim (there was also a denim linen offering).
Elsewhere, Leba’s tops offered hints of sexiness with lots of ease — open-neck Henleys and distressed T-shirts, or a white shirt that was twisted inward to create its sensual, wide neckline. Cardigans, little knits and hoodies were cropped while the brand’s signature grungy florals and plaids came in easy dresses and printed linen shirts, to name a few.
While they may have been posed against the AI-generated Glastonbury backdrop, Leba’s mix of spring styles felt right at home in the real world.
