Moncaya, a Spanish singer-songwriter based in Mexico, opened Sandra Weil’s latest show with a performance that raised two questions that surprised the audience: What is it to be human? Where is our humanity?
The collection, called Lo-Tek, ‘which refers to the technology of nature’, tries to answer the above questions from a contemporary perspective, with technology and artificial intelligence as new players in our daily lives. “This collection is an exercise, a question, an invitation to think about what makes us human and how we differ from this intelligence: what is really ours? What really is our humanity? What is our own human, spiritual technology?” Weil explained backstage. “It is an invitation, instead of being afraid of these new technologies or intelligences, to explore ourselves and not be afraid.”
Weil approached this metaphorically and divided the collection into blocks. The first consisted of white garments reminiscent of astronauts and introduced the theme of technology and its progress as a common thread – or concern – with unexpected accessories such as cables, symbolizing connectivity, another recurring theme in the collection. This was followed by a more earthy block, with nature-inspired colours, prints and motifs that resembled veins – or perhaps roots? Then came the psychedelic block, with brighter colors but still combining the leitmotif of technology and nature. The final block presented party dresses in dark shades with shiny details, which the designer described as a ‘more cosmic’ segment.
Weil also embraced a literal interpretation of the themes that moved her this season, using prints that resembled the connecting lines on a memory card. These adorned key pieces from her brand’s catalogue, including her popular bustier and wide pleated trousers, as well as new additions such as mini dresses, shorts and cardigans.
For a collection that started with deep, difficult-to-answer questions, Weil managed to create a fresh and optimistic proposal with a younger and more playful profile. Maybe that’s what separates humans from machines: the ability to find optimism, even in a piece of clothing.