For Spring 2013, Zero + Maria Cornejo went pretty futuristic. Models in sculpted neoprene jackets, tops and dresses in bleak blues, grays and blacks looked like they could have stalked off a science fiction set; touches of white bottom-lash eyeliner and space-age hair did little to mitigate the feeling. Despite this, the clothes looked wearable, comfortable even.
As always, Cornejo presented a collection with strong geometry, but instead of her usual asymmetrical look, and drapey fabrics, the hemlines were mostly square, the shoulders rounded, and the fabrics stiffer, more structured than in previous seasons.
Like many S/S 2013 designers, Cornejo stuck to a simple palette and a majority of pieces were black or white. She opened the show with a series of strong, dark pieces; boxy coats took on abstract forms in black, blue and grey, each with a prominent zipper down the front— très Haute Vader.
Cornejo lightened the mix with a few mesh pieces before revealing a wild series of dresses, jumpers and tops in vivid photographic prints, keeping to the mostly blue, black and white theme; a few splashes of red here and there.
A few dresses in washed silk played with the shirttail hem trend that rocked the streets this summer, while a few others experimented with flouncy cuts that allowed hemlines to bounce and sway as the models walked back to their proverbial maker.