Patrik Ervell

Origin: 2005, New York, USA

Field: Menswear

Designer: Patrik Ervell

Biography:

The Swedish-born Ervell got a political science degree from UC Berkeley and fell into design in 2005 after working as an editor at V magazine. His aesthetic is minimal, and involves creative use of utilitarian materials—think parachute fabric and solar-blanket fibers. In 2007, the year of his first runway show, Ervell won a $25,000 Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award.

Style:

Ervell’s designs focus on minimal, carefully tailored American sportswear, with luxurious touches. Austere, minimalist staples for downtown types. Futurism and technology is a prevailing theme; the label is known for its use of technical fabrics and utilitarian materials. With Patrik Ervell there is always a sense of clean cut minimalism showcased in his simple lines and impeccably sharp tailoring but here he fused his signature with an unexpected mix of fabrics and a extraordinary sense of details and perfect finishes.

Fall/Winter 11 Collection:

Patrik Ervell is evolving a very particular aesthetic through the look of his clothes, the sound of his shows. It’s lean, angular, intensely disciplined, but there’s also something romantic about it. The transient beauty of youth, perhaps. Or maybe youth’s dazzle (like the Siouxsie song that played today, or the art of Ryan McGinley, who is always front-row center at Ervell’s presentations). Whatever, there’s a quietly obsessive edge to the designer’s work that is more convincing—and impressive—by the season.

For Fall, Ervell carried his love of the uniform essence of menswear to a logical limit. He joined the air force, in spirit at least. The aerial mood was established by a backdrop of billowing parachutes, which were gradually suffused with light, like clouds. It was a simple, beautiful effect. Cloud effects were also hand-painted on a silk twill bomber jacket. In fact, bombers and flight suits were the collection’s key pieces, but, in this context, you could attribute a subtle aerodynamism to Ervell’s trademark silhouette (the narrow pants had pleats stitched flat to emphasize the streamline), or the poncho/coat hybrid, aptly described as “billowing” in the show