CGD

"I want the collection to express joy, lightness and generosity, to be timeless and optimistic," wrote Liběna Rochová about her latest collection INSIDE 23. Her encounter with the work of Brno painter Petr Kvíčala was key to expressing her desire to face difficult and chaotic times with clothing reflecting inner strength, hope, courage and joy. The elementary shapes of Kvíčala’s abstract paintings (the famous wave and zigzag lines) shine with rich colour hues and attract the viewer with their vital energy. The potential of Kvíčala's ornaments for clothing was noticed by Denisa Nová in 2008, and the collaboration between the two artists resulted in a collection of red and white swimwear. Liběna Rochová was intrigued by a painting in which multicoloured lines of curved and sharp shapes cross in a seemingly random rhythm. Seven bright, Mediterranean hues, as Kvíčala describes them, and white formed the basis for 29 models of the collection. Rochová is unrivalled in her approach to materials and fabrics and their uncompromising choice in the search for the best silhouette. Her own creative grasp of Kvíčala's painting was gradually played out in six sections. She materialized the inspiration by bold colours into generously cut and elegant trouser suits and waistcoats, whose refinement was underlined by witty details, such as pockets in the lower back of the jacket, common in outdoor clothing. Other monoliths of dresses and jumpsuits with asymmetrical cuts are based on the designer’s search for the shape of wearable clothing based on abstract sections of the artist’s paintings. Liběna Rochová's high-quality fabrics are no surprise, but this time she has added knitted sweaters and dresses made of two-toned jacquard to her collection. The kaleidoscope of visions of how the inspiration by Kvíčala's painting can be grasped in different ways is expanded by prints of the motif on cotton and polyester, and in the case of print on tulle, Rochová used a new technology, creating a 3D effect. The collection is multi-layered, combining different types of fabrics, full of bright colours and abstract prints, but the whole gives a sense of order and harmony. Above all, it exudes great joy and passion for creation, inner balance and detachment.

Andrea Březinová

Through her collection presented at Designblok 2016, the widely known and popular fashion designer Liběna Rochová has again clearly demonstrated that, to her, fashion does not merely represent applied art, but also art that does not require any additions, since it is perfectly capable of unfolding its multi-layered beauty and undoubted aesthetic value through its very essence. Liběna Rochová followed a two-fold inspiration this time – first, in the works of her students from the Prague Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design, and second, in art, where part of her collection with its overly-dimensional outlines is a reminder of grandiose sculptures. Other models, on the contrary, work with distinctly slim forms. And yes, diversity presented in various contexts is one of the predominant features of the collection. Take, for example, the materials. The designer accompanied the rather traditional leather, wool and other fabrics with, for example, silicon, applied mainly on shoes and face masks. The latter represent inseparable accessories of the stately models, with coats, dresses, overalls, but also down jackets.

Rochová never disappoints in surprising the fashion public; fortunately, it is not surprises in the form of a one-off shock but instead, a continuous and very pleasant excitement, with a vision and idea as clear and self-contained as it can be in the fashion business with all its inconstancy and unpredictability. Her work purposely and totally ignores all season trends, which is exactly what turns it into the art mentioned above. The current StainSoulSeal collection is the best proof of this.

Andrea Běhounková