Ivana Helsinki is an independent art, fashion and cinema brand by Finnish designer Paola Ivana Suhonen. This was my 3rd season observing her work. With every collection my fascination grows. For Spring/Summer 2012 the inspiration was "Indian Summer" all about "Love stories, Road trips & Dresses///Northern Oddity, Pure Beauty & Wildwood Vagabonds". The clothes were tribal in nature and the styling of the models was unlike anything that I had even seen. Most wore their hair in bushy ponytails stacked sky high and their hands were completely covered in black paint. This visual took me back to childhood days of making mud pies after the rain. The pallet was sprightly, ranging in hues of blue, green, red with pleasant pops of yellow. It was a nice surprise to see Paola incorporate swimwear, this season, for the 1st time. Overall, the collection was very wearable and featured a "flavorful sophistication along with a shot of contemporary charm."
the hair!
exciting to see a Black model get the coveted closing nod to end the show
photos: Lesley Ware © 2011
The sightlines where I stood were awful, so I only took a few photos. Here's a page from the lookbook to give you a better flavor of the collection [click it to enlarge].
Check out Ivana Helsinki from the past seasons on The Creative Cookie here & here.
