Premiering exclusively with AnOther, Av Vattev’s sixth collection pays tribute to the legendary Rolling Stones frontman and the electrifying energy of the era
- Who is it? Antonio Vattev is a Bulgaria-born, London-based fashion designer rewriting the sartorial codes of 1960s and 70s rock
- Why do I want it? Thoughtfully crafted, future-thinking pieces shaped by an emotional reverence to music
- Where can I find it? Av Vattev is available on the label’s own website, as well as via Browns and Farfetch.
Who is it? Plastered on the walls above Antonio Vattev’s desk in his central London design studio is a mesmerising collage of cut-out photographs. Scans from Japanese street style magazines are taped up alongside images of bound sculptures by Christo and Jeanne-Claude, vivid Georgia O’Keeffe oil paintings, and candid mid-performance photographs of Jim Morrison, Grace Jones and Mick Jagger – a collision of art, fashion and rock ‘n’ roll, as if in some teenage fanboy’s bedroom. “I barely look at them after I put them on the wall,” Vattev says, gazing up at the eclectic tapestry from his desk chair. “It’s always a memory. Combining them with a memory from my Bulgarian heritage allows me to explore more, to create something different.”
Vattev has had a busy week; on Friday, he retrieved his new collection from a production factory in Bulgaria, with fittings happening over the weekend. On Tuesday he was on set, capturing the Spring/Summer 2024 lookbook along with an additional photo story and behind-the-scenes film, and a day later, he’s back here in his studio flicking through the raw, unedited images on his laptop. But Vattev is accustomed to this tireless pursuit of his craft. Born and raised in a small country town in Bulgaria, Vattev moved to London to study at Central Saint Martins, enrolling in fashion more-or-less by chance. “I actually applied for a foundation in graphic design and architecture. Later I’m in the school introducing myself to everyone and I’m checking a list with the names, and I don’t see my name there.” After a second review of Vattev’s application portfolio, the tutors decided that he would be better suited for a foundation in fashion design, which he later enrolled in.
Through studying fashion, Vattev realised how design worlds could converge: architecture, graphics, product design and photography all feed into and pulse through the designer’s output. “‘Fashion’ is the less inspiring thing for me. It’s more about everything else – music, movement, art – something that gives joy. It’s never about the clothing – the garment is more like the whole universe.”
Why do I want it? His sixth collection since the inception of his brand Av Vattev in 2020 (a year after graduating), the S/S24 collection – titled Sweet Summer Sweat, plucked from the lyrics of The Eagles’ dreamy 1970s hit Hotel California – is primarily inspired by the wardrobe of The Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger. The British musician’s theatrical, boundary-pushing style thrums with that magnetic, fearless rockstar nonchalance which helped shape the very fabric of the rock counterculture, and the fashion that responds to it. “The love of rock music is from my father,” he says. “Music, for my parents’ generation, was an escape.” In 60s Bulgaria, as the communist regime consolidated the nation’s power it was declared that, according to the Vice President of the State Council, the whole country had been disquieted by the “muddy stream of musical trends,” allegedly sweeping away all the true values of music. Nationwide, listening to The Beatles, The Rolling Stones or Jimi Hendrix could lead to jail time, while underground music parties were often raided by police, and in some instances, rock music records had to be smuggled into the country.
It’s this sense of disobedience, of provocation and magnetism that feeds Vattev’s S/S24 collection. Borrowing from fashion’s codes of glam rock rebellion, an MA1 bomber jacket is paired with an intricate sequined dress that’s an overt reference to Jagger’s outfit at his historic 1969 Hyde Park concert. Elsewhere, Vattev has expanded the use of his triangular jukebox closure, placed on the tailoring, outerwear and for the first time, legwear. Skintight American football pants (another reference to Jagger) offer an athletic dynamism that draws attention to the crotch, and a T-shirt is laced with string which can be drawn to reveal the bare torso beneath. Signature Georgia O’Keeffe knitwear from the previous season is transformed into a laser cut denim smock, and shorts too come geometrically laser cut, revealing a glossy, raw-hemmed lining beneath.
Vattev doesn’t at first realise that this could be explicitly sexy, nor feminine. “Through the styling, everything looks – I don’t want to say feminine or sexy – it’s not masculine, but I don't think it’s feminine. It’s just more ... provocative,” he says. “People would say the dress is feminine, but I don’t see feminine at all. It’s never been a goal.” Signing off the collection’s press release is a concise statement: “The Av Vattev man is masculine, but sensitive too.”
Music is intrinsic not only in the referencing, but to Vattev’s design practice too. “I have a speaker here. They kicked me out of a previous studio because there were artists that were complaining that it was loud – and I cannot listen to music on headphones,” he says. When listening to music, he’s not specific about the genre. “Every time when we have my team here, I’m asking one of them to play their music.” Abstracting the sounds of the 60s and 70s counterculture and threading them into garments that capture the electrifying energy and sartorial audacity that define the rock legend, Vattev pieces together the past and offers it a fresh pair of eyes – for what is nostalgia without progress? “The whole world – everything – is always based on something that happened before. But this is something that I haven’t experienced. So for me, it’s about creating a universe.”
Where can I find it? Av Vattev is available on the label’s own website, as well as via Browns and Farfetch.
