OAMC LOOKS TO DIETER RAMS FOR SPRING 2022 INSPIRATION
German industrial designer Dieter Rams served as inspiration for OAMC’s new spring/summer 2021 collection.
Through this lens, the collection’s intent is to elevate garments through both material and appearance: using superior fabrics, trims, and techniques to create products that last, and eliminating any superfluous design details. Tailoring is sharp, with single visible buttons, in strong wool granité, double-faced sculptural cotton, and jacquard cotton-polyester houndstooth. Silhouettes are full, or contracted with anatomically shaped port trousers, at times featuring waterproof performance zippers. Outerwear is multi-pocketed, modular, voluminous, soft, and billowy, recalling military function. Bonded double-face printed viscose and three-layer nylon is worked technically, and printed with softened cosmic motifs. Fluid fil-coupé and Broderie Anglaise adorned shirtings are cut generously, creating a soft silhouette against sturdy recycled polyester drill trousers and structured coats.
The most important development for this season, however, is the introduction of OAMC Re:Work. The brand has committed part of the collection to the idea of using exiting garments, fabrics, and trims which are then re-proportioned, overdyed, reinforced, and modified through the integration of hardware or fabric panels. This season features a deconstruction exercise of military garments and blankets, specifically the American M-65 Field Jacket liner, which has been completely re-imagined in several forms.
For its new Re:Work project, OAMC has taken apart different garments, re-proportioned them, added and subtracted fabrics and trims, overdyed, and refinished them, and integrated these styles into the silhouette of the season. “We are proud to begin this journey of re-examining how we can revisit deadstock, vintage, and discarded garments and reinvent the way they are worn and used,” the brand said in a statement. “It is important that we work into this idea, and this season marks the beginning of a deep exploration into this process.”
While the execution of the Re:Work garments is the realization of the concept of examining objects in a new way, OAMC has also graphically represented the idea through the image of a simple crushed can: looking for beauty and interest in the things which we discard.
The color palette of the collection was inspired by Dieter Rams’ work. Greys with touches of green and pink, deep forestry petrol greens, bright yellows and reds, rich dark blues and blacks, and natural tan leather are all present. However, it is the subtle application of strong contract color that illustrates the reference. As mentioned by Mr. Rams, “having small touches of color makes it more colorful than having the whole thing in color.”
Accessories and footwear are sturdy. Round vertical duffle bags feature technical hardware and construction, padded slides are built on top of shaped, leather-wrapped footbeds, and sturdy lug-sole boots are laceless with waterproof zip side entry, rubberized toe and heel caps, and OAMC’s signature outsole clip.
