Mark Fast came across the inspiration for his fall collection on a graffiti-covered street in Milan named after Italian designer Joe Colombo. “I was like, Why am I stopping here?” he said. “It was this organic, of-the-moment thing.”
Fast didn’t directly reference Colombo’s work in the clothes he created this season; instead he used it as a springboard to tap into his own interpretation of modern elegance. “I had this vision of rock stars who fall from another planet, they come to earth,” the designer said. “What would they dress up as?”
This intergalactic concept was expressed in various eclectic ways: velvet chenille dresses interwoven with his signature fishnet crochet—some with faux-fur hemlines or necklines or viscose fringing—in black, neon, and burgundy shades. There was also more daywear than in previous seasons across both womenswear and menswear. Denim jeans were poppered onto denim boots; hoodies and tees came emblazoned with Fast’s graffiti tag that he made for what he called his “younger audience”; cropped puffers were fitted close to the body like corsets.
Alongside his own imaginative touch points and Colombo’s work, Fast designed fall with his “muse of the moment” in mind: Lily-Rose Depp, whom he dressed for Vogue Australia last year. “She’s cool. I love that energy, that vibe—film star, artistic, strong.”
According to the designer, “the Mark Fast man and woman love to take risks and experiment with fashion and their bodies.” That said, this season he wanted to cover what he’d usually expose (though there was still skin flashing), offering some looks that were more modest than usual for his fan base—and himself. “There are a few pieces that I might steal from the collection,” said Fast. “It’s nice—I can actually wear my things. I get into it and feel the vibe of the customer.”
