Ellery Resort 2016

For their Resort 2016 collection, the Australian design house Ellery looked to the quintessential late 60s rocker girlfriend archetype, Anita Pallenberg. Pallenberg was girlfriend both to Rolling Stones band members Brian Jones and Keith Richards.

Pallenberg personified the rocker chick of the later 60s and early 1970s with her bell-bottomed jeans, loose blouson tops and slightly androgynous appeal. And though she did have a short career as a model and as a part of Andy Warhol’s “Factory” cabine, historically she more well known as the paramour of Rolling Stone band members and her influence on the band.

Ellery Resort 2016 collection is an amalgam of early 70s chic rocker babe influences paired with androgyny, moody black magic mysticism, and effortless sensuality. As always, creative director Kym Ellery pushes the limit of wearable fashion and fashion as art. But isn’t that what real fashion is supposed to be about?

This is a brand that projects beyond merchandising, giving consumers garments that cannot easily be replaced or duplicated by other brands. Though the brand aesthetic may be not fit a wide demographics fashion palette, much of the pieces in this collection are unique and dissimilar from other collections.

That said, Kym Ellery does stay on the 2016 Resort trend with an early 70s perspective and the ruffle trend that has popped up in many of the resort collection for this season. Detail and silhouettes nod to the nostalgic with ruffles cascading in abundance on crisp shirting.  Decolletage tops with deconstructed bell sleeves also added to a 70s homage. Bold topstitching punctuated the tailored styles and juxtaposed the decidedly modern crease front-crop flare suits. And though is a strong androgynous point of view in this outing, this collection is not without its own brand of sensuality evidenced in deep plunging blouses and sheer diaphanous fabrics that reveal much.

A monochromatic color palette peppered with evocative burnt orange, burgundy, charcoal and soft blues. And fabrications are majestic with silk velvet, boucle binding, twill suiting shirted jersey and corrugated applique.

—William S. Gooch