Her designs are artful, almost sculptural while exploring forms, silhouettes, and texture: The New York-based designer Melitta Baumeister creates what could easily be shown at a museum — and her most recent collection is not an exception.
For her SS22 collection, she wrapped her model in delicate lilac, soft white, vibrant green, and deep black. She barely mixed the different colors, which emphasized the strong shapes of the garments and shoes (some of them with carved wooden heels) even more. We saw eccentric puffy shoulders which were paired with skirts that almost had a wavy lampshade hem, an a-line blouse with big ruffles in a shiny lilac material as well as a look that featured abstractly formed foam which made you think of Rei Kawakubos „lumps and bumps“ collection in the 90s. And, of course, the collection featured many wide silhouettes, starting with oversized sweaters and matching pants.
Melitta Baumeister not only played with shapes but with a variety of different fabrics: She used ones with an opulent shine to them as well as knits and soft, see-through material while also presenting a look in grey washed denim.
All the different shapes and fabrics made the collection seem like an exploration of the body: sometimes, it got lost in the amount of fabric, making it seem like it’s almost not existent. While other times, see-through materials emphasized that there is, in fact, a body.
In the end, Melitta Baumeister’s SS22 collection is a work of art, something you find yourself looking at like you look at a painting or sculpture in a museum.
Images: Melitta Baumeister