Ari-Bo is the Maison Michel fw 17 code

A little known term is « Ari-Bo », short for aristo-bohème, or a bohemian aristocrat, the crested version of France’s bobos.

The descendants of the country’s long gone royalty are at the heart of this collection by PRISCILLA ROYER. Their gentle eccentricity derives from feeling at odds with current social changes, resulting in a hippy-yet-decadent lifestyle.

Drawing inspiration from the child-like heroines of Michael Sucsy’s Grey Gardens (1975); from the majestic outfits of militant poetess Nancy Clare Cunard; or the young boys with powerful imagination in Lord of the Flies by William Golding, (1954) – the pieces reflect playful solutions to shattered ideals.

Traditional tartans and mohair checks are juxtaposed with studded neoprene, giving those an unsuspected second life; rich crests act as a wink to medieval embroideries, and golden fabric, on the contrary, is a reference to survival blankets, in a game of high and low, yesterday and today.

Caps with moulded cat ears and Fedora hats are chopped in half and knotted back together with ribbon, as to recycle classics and reinject them in contemporary life.

Lush materials – soft velvet and cashmere, airy mohair – are turned on their heads, floral string is printed on distorted nylon, mother-of-pearl is incrusted onto PVC. Rosary beads become jewelry, like relics of a religion that has become obsolete.

The color palette is inspired by The Taking of the Christ (Caravaggio, 1602), the graphic theatricality of Leigh Bowery, and the traveller’s chic in Whitnail and I (Bruce Robinson, 1987). These pieces link past and present, towards a new sense of self, in between worlds and social spheres, freed of social constraints.