The Autumn/Winter 2010/11 shows at Paris Fashion Week come - for better or worse - leather bound. Also, “tribe” and “tribal” are words that often get tossed about in reference to this season’s collections. Sarah Mower of Style.com quoted Rick Owens as saying that his women are, ‘a sect of nuns with inner discipline’. Well, naturally I think Dune:

Punk Bene Gesserits at the Rick Owens A/W 2010/11 show

All photos from Style.com

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“I want to make a dress which can be exhibited in her living-room rather than kept in her closet.” This is the solitary statement on Bonkuk Koo’s blog. His beautiful dresses are staggeringly complex works that should not be shut away in a closet, out of sight and out of mind. “It is not just clothes for wearing, it’s art that people can get a lot of emotion and energy from.” Whether they are displayed in a gallery or on the body, Koo’s dresses cannot fail to be regarded as outstanding artistic achievements.

a dress by Bonkuk Koo

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Milan has produced some stellar output this season. Favorites for Fall/Winter 2010/11 are Gabriele Colangelo, Albino, Gaetano Navarra, Francesco Scognamiglio, Marco de Vincenzo, Prada and Marni. All photos from Style.it.

A look from Gabriele Colangelo’s geologically inspired Fall/Winter 2010/11 collection

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Alexander McQueen was a visionary and losing him extends beyond the realm of fashion.

Constantly chasing whoever or whatever is next in fashion can often leave me jaded, but then along comes Lamija Suljević. Based in Sweden, Suljević is one of the most gifted young designers I’ve seen in some time. The materials and handcrafted details in her Fall/Winter 2010 collection are infused with childhood memories of her native Bosnia. “When I think of my hometown, I think of old techniques and handmade garments. Having that with me during my design process has become one of my strengths. If I’m working on my collections, I work wholeheartedly. Nothing else is good enough. If my grandmother were alive she would be proud, and things like that are very important to me.”

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The alcove I’ve carved out here is dim and dusty with underuse, so I’m showcasing the work of Spanish photographer Eugenio Recuenco. He is a master.

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The newest collection from Sandra Backlund, “Ink Blot Test”:

photo by Peter Farago

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While not all are entirely wearable, the following coats and jackets stand out for structure, innovation or just because I would love to wear them.

Kenzo a/w 2007-8

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The attraction to Everlasting Sprout’s a/w 2007-8 “Charm” collection is due as much to the idea behind the looks as to the skillfully worked knitwear itself. Keiichi Muramatsu and Noriko Seki explain that what inspired them for this collection, “…was a series of pictures taken by Eugène Atget. The pictures capture the old streets of Paris, but more importantly the light that has been enclosed in the pictures gave us a lot of inspiration. The main idea is the scene in which one man falls in love with one girl. The girl is so beautiful that she is shining, even in a black and white picture.”

Everlasting Sprout, a/w 2007-8 “Charm” collection

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If you’re in Japan between now and June 3rd Koji Arai’s “Last Supper” exhibit is on at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa: