Lilia Litkovska’s collection was a metaphor for strength in adversity. A recent trip to the Himalayas got the Ukrainian designer thinking about the notion of peace between people and nature, and gave her confidence, she explained.
The references made sense in the pure lines of her contemporary designs and their graceful yet uncompromising silhouettes. Litkovska’s wardrobe plays on subtle twists of menswear tailoring for the female form. “Men’s shapes on women’s shoulders embellishes women’s nature,” she summed up.
In reference to the struggles her compatriots — and employees — are facing back home in Ukraine, it was a fitting message. ‘Women are starting to be more powerful, confident, stronger in our ideas. That changes the approach,” said Litkovska. “It’s not just me; the team has changed, our values are stronger.”
Her sharp wool coats and suits were set off-kilter, with scarf-like panels draped across the fronts, buttoned closed at an angle. Among the standouts was a textured jacket crafted from offcut scraps from her own production. Her tailored pants had asymmetric fasteners, and jackets cut in half by a zipper were uncompromising in their pure lines. Underneath, off-white silk shirts and shifts hinted at inner softness.
Her presentation, at L’Eclaireur’s boutique in the Marais, saw guests greeted with warm glasses of tea and photos of the designer’s trip to Annapurna. Each was asked to write a message of hope on a white ribbon and tie it onto a tree-like sculpture at the entrance to the store.
Litkovska’s message this season was as much about the importance of solidarity as about politics. “It’s important to support the team and their families, and to create, because in creation, we have hope,” she summed up. Her powerful designs pleaded a strong case.
