The intersection of fashion and athletics is a topical one that Stefano Pilati addressed in a roundabout way in his latest Random Identities collection. “I’ve been excited to tap into the sport, therefore Pop,” said the designer in an email exchange. He’s been helped in this mission by New Era, a 100+ year old American company that works with the NFL and MLB. With them, Pilati developed a varsity jacket with the RI brand name writ huge. It was lined with a print of a woman and the motto “If I had a hammer I’d smash the patriarchy.” (In this context a bat might have been more on point). He also made baseball-style caps with New Era. These had bonnet strings so they can be worn cross body or hanging down the back in addition to on the head. This was a big accessories season for RI. Not only did Pilati pair with Sebago to update the classic penny loafer, he also debuted eyewear with two dramatic styles named for musicians Ray Charles and Roy Orbison.
It’s possible, in fact, to think of this collection as a playlist that covers American music from the ’50s to the ’80s. (When I suggested this connection to sound, Pilati mentioned early Run DMC. ) With clothes, as with music, one’s tastes can be catholic. There were a lot of options here. The square cut of a gray suit looked mid-century in inspiration, while an asymmetric blazer was more New Wave. Western meets ’70s leisurewear included chain-print shirts with extra long collar points and check pants with piping. Pilati’s talent is such that he transcends and remixes his references in a way that is distinctively his.
The lookbook segues from more dressed up to casual. In the latter category are jeans (in washed blue denim and railroad stripe) that use the grain in three ways (vertical, horizontal, and vertical). In the showroom, the brand’s popular Berlin Baggies style had been abbreviated to short length, but retained the operable zipper on the center back seam. It’d be a tease to wear with one of RI’s bodysuit shirts. A pink terry and woven check work jacket paired with full-legged pants and accessorized with a cap had a street smart attitude about it.
Never afraid to speak his mind, the designer embroidered the following query on one of the caps: “Why not make fashion shady again?” Asked to elaborate, he wrote: “Shady as a way to criticize, to get better in whatever context. Fashion, in my opinion, if not selective, loses its appeal. It’s not a question of luxury vs. accessibility, it’s more a question of how you use it; favoring it at any cost as a unique way of being that projects a deep understanding of your body and identity.” Dance to your own drum, in other words.
