In conversation with a fashion critic, I discussed the importance of trends. He highlighted an often neglected point: the ephemeral nature of fashion is a historic record, allowing us to trace a society’s taste, and by extension, its tensions and anxieties. Prada stands three steps ahead to the industry it inhabits. The brand’s legacy lies in articulating the aesthetic values of culture through contradiction. Miuccia Prada, now alongside Raf Simons, has translated clothing into a counterpoint.
Ugliness is one of Mrs. Prada’s most used tools for this goal. However, for the past three seasons, the duo has been on an imperfection kick. In the age of accessible perfection, it’s become the only way to differentiate luxury from its dreaded counterpart.
Here, knit vests were made boxy, almost awkwardly homemade. On a yellow knit jumper, the collar was loose, as if extended by use or being improperly hung. Signs of wear were elevated to the highest regard. In the age of mass consumption, patina is privilege.
The most effective – and shareable – of the garments this idea was communicated in single-breasted coats, the back of which revealed a previous shell, in houndstooth, slowly chipping away to uncover the back seam and the triangular logo in the nape of the model's neck. Trench coats were creased, as if just taken out of the closet where they had been folded. Parkas had the imprint of matching hats.
For all their intellectualisation and conceptual work, neither of the pair is clueless to the fact that what they do isn’t just communicating, it’s also selling. Selling to the top of the social hierarchy, no less. Shirt cuffs jolted out of wool blazers and slim, tailored coats. These were spotted with specks of mould, stained by coffee spills. Beneath the historical uniform of the upper class, something is rotting.
This season, silhouettes were particularly slim. Simons’ curiosity over silhouette rears its head once again. Long coats were awkward on the body, their shoulders shrinking models’ frames as they walked. Backstage, the silhouette was discussed; the design duo claimed it felt comforting in opposition to a movement that widens them. Prada stands in opposition to the industry, and, therefore, ahead of it. Fall/Winter 2026 was, in a way, no different than all other Prada collections: a helpful historic document to juxtapose against wider trends.
Words by Pedro Vasconcelos
