The Spring/Summer 2023 edition of Copenhagen Fashion Week has come to an end, putting the spotlight on the best designers from the Nordic fashion scene. The event brought together some of the hottest creatives in the region as well as some up-and-coming names that caught our attention.
This season’s favorites at CPHFW were ROTATE, which presented a disco party-themed collection, and GANNI, which featured runways featuring multiple collaborations. (di)vision presented a collection inspired by the effects of war, while Holzweiler presented dreamy technical designs with parachute and workwear details. Stein Goya explored contrasts with a strong yet soft collection, and Wood Wood put together a runway that celebrates the artistic community.
Keep scrolling to read our favorite shows and runway trends spotted at CPFFW SS23.
Baum und Pferdgarten has closed the streets of Vognmagergade to present its SS23 collection. Bright pink stripes covered the runway, and models walked in looks that explored the concept of time.The label revisited some of the most iconic pieces from its 23-year history, revisiting some of the most iconic pieces from its 23-year history, featuring Flower His prints, They brought details to the stage like oversized silhouettes, pinstripes and unique monograms. Pinstripe items were layered on top of each other, prints were found on translucent organza his items, and the runway transitioned from blue and black tones to green, peach and tangerine tones. In addition to brightly colored clothing, the brand has unveiled a capsule collection of watches and accessories created in collaboration with Danish watchmaker Skagen.
To conclude the first day of CPHFW, (di)vision’s Simon and Nanna Wick invited attendees to an outdoor space surrounded by nature. The venue was decorated with GUBI-provided mushroom-shaped lamps and Instagram-worthy sofas.Inspired by Francis Ford Coppola’s 1979 film hell apocalypse, the SS23 collection took military references to express the effects of war. , including patch denim pieces such as jackets. GUBI’s mushroom-shaped light doubled as an accessory, either in a bag or attached to a belt.
Ditte Reffstrup brought positive and happy energy to the GANNI runway covered in chalk art and bike ramps. Dubbed ‘JOYRIDE’, the show opened with BMX rider Marlene Keilstrap Sorensen galloping down the stage, followed by a collection full of collaborations. The look included denim designed in partnership with Levi’s, outdoor his wear co-created with 66North, and a Barbour branded jacket. In addition to the collaboration, GANNI debuted an innovative his T-his shirt made with her Infinna using fibers woven from textile waste.
Refffstrup said of the collection: Open and my thoughts just flow. This collection is really about that feeling. She added that the SS23 show was all about celebrating the energy of summer in Copenhagen.
Guests step into an interior space adorned with large floating balloons made from deadstock parachutes, a major inspiration for Holzweiler’s SS23 collection. The series, titled “In Motion,” featured ruched dresses accentuated with rings and ripstop cords, adding contrast to his print of dreamy florals. Transformed into various accessories such as belts, harnesses and backpack straps, cords accompanied items for women and men in pastel tones such as desert dust, travertine, cerulean, coriander and malachite. The look was completed with headwear, including a crocheted pilot’s hat with long tassels, created in collaboration with hatmaker Noel Stewart.
ROTATE wrapped up the final day of CPHFW at the Bella Arena where models walked under a disco ball. Through his latest collection, the brand’s creative directors Thora Valdimersdottir and Janet Madsen express the power of an unbreakable bond, energetic and up with retro hip-hop tunes playing in the background. We put on a beat show. The look embraces the label’s signature high-glam aesthetic, featuring neon sequins and foil his prints alongside crystal embellishments. Standing out was the fiery Theresa Dress, launched simultaneously as an augmented reality (AR) experience and NFT, marking ROTATE’s foray into her Web3. Following the full collection, all models transformed into a shiny, bold red look to celebrate the show’s finale, dancing onstage under a disco ball as CPFFW closed.
Barbara Potts and Katherine Sachs continue to take Sachs Potts in a new direction, moving away from the furry materials used in the brand’s signature coats since 2014. In her interview with Hypebae, Potts said the SS23 collection was inspired by Crown Princess. Mary of Denmark – especially “When she came to Denmark from Australia in the early 2000s, she lived a mostly normal life in Copenhagen, casually roaming the streets with stylish looks”.
To mark the brand’s biggest show to date, the presentation took place at Kongens Nytorv, where models and close friends such as Pernille Teisbaek and Erin Wasson walked in fringed accessories and vibrant prints and colors. Her duo of designers defined the Nordic cool girl style at the SS23 presentation with oversized sequins, perforated her skirts and more.
Entitled ‘Whisper Loud’, Stine Goya’s 23 SS collection was soft, supple and powerful with bold colors and prints. Inspired by Riot Grrrl, an avant-garde movement led by feminist pioneers fighting gender norms, the runway featured contrasting textures and silhouettes. “These women, and Riot Girl, the natural force of her movement give me so much joy and energy,” the designer said of the collection. “Their fierce, disrespectful demeanor is what drives this collection.
The space features a series of sand structures that collapse one by one throughout the show, referencing the destruction of barriers, and knits and mini skirts paired with bomber jackets and slips paired with technical outerwear. It makes a perfect backdrop for the dress.
Wood Wood’s latest collection was, as the name suggests, Escape to Paradise. The show was set on Lille he Langebro, a curved pedestrian and bicycle bridge through the center of Copenhagen. Scheduled just in time for the city’s sunset, the models walked across the bridge as pastel pink and blue hues lit up the sky.
This time, Wood Wood was inspired to celebrate the artistic community as Peggy Guggenheim supported the great artists of the 20th century at Venice’s Palazzo Venie dei Leoni. The looks are centered on workwear styles such as carpenter pants and painter shirts, with items that emphasize functionality such as bias cut floral patterns and two-piece tracksuits.
This season was Cecily Liv Mortensen’s debut stage. He joined Woodwood as head of design and created his SS23 collection with brand co-founder Brian SS Jensen. Mortensen said in his press release: Decoupling each other’s energies, that’s where we want to head into his next 20 years—focusing on togetherness that translates into the work we create.
