Simone Rocha
The rising-star fashion designer culls inspiration from the works of fine artists like Louise Bourgeois and Lucien Freud
In the hands of many other designers, the layered ruffles, puffy sleeves, and floral embroideries found in Simone Rocha’s spring 2020 collection could appear cloyingly sweet. But culled from the imagination of the rising-star creative, those traditional elements encapsulate a feminist power that has attracted fashion-forward stars like Chloë Grace Moretz and Rihanna.
For her namesake line, Rocha finds inspiration in museums and galleries. “Roni Horn, Louise Bourgeois, Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud—there is a weight and a pull for me into their work,” says Rocha, who was invited by Hauser & Wirth to create a limited-edition series of earrings drawn from Bourgeois’s Spiral Woman and 1995 Untitled sculptures.
Additionally, she crafts a line of furnishings, and her ateliers in London, New York, and Hong Kong are filled with a masterful mix displayed in a gallery-like setting. “My collections stem from different emotions, thoughts, stories, inspirations, and it can sometimes translate beyond clothes,” says Rocha.
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A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2020 Spring Issue under the headline Creative Minds. Subscribe to the magazine.