bring on the butter

Food and fashion have an intertwined existence. Restaurants, their plating, photography and interiors are as influential in the trend conversation as fashion. Some would argue that it’s impossible to know which is chicken and which is egg. When looking at colors for 2021, there’s an immediate connection to familiar foods that are recontextualized into of-the-moment hues: butter, carrots + pistachio.

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@lailacooks with @frederikbillebrahe @maxrocha

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Lalia Gohar created butter sculptures in collaboration with Atelier September's Frederik Billie Brahe and Max Rocha. Videos show her spreading them on baugette; a lesson in impermanence.¹

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Midwest Brigadoon by Ochen Kaylan.

Famously, the Minnesota State Fair has been naming a dairy princess since 1954, called Princess Kay of the Milky Way, and her head has been sculpted out of butter since 1965, when the tradition began as a way to highlight the state’s position as a top butter producer.

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Acne Studios SS21 + Resort 21

Acne Studios isn’t afraid to be avant garde. With their 2021 collections, they explore layered silhouettes, sheer materials and palettes that start with butter and build to adjacent celery, limón and sand.

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Gia Studios SS21

Lam Gia Khang, a Project Runway Vietnam alum, designs collections under the moniker of Gia Studios. Rooted in craft, but contemporary in expression, the designer explores buttery tones in many materials in 2021.

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Khaite Pre-Fall 21

Cate Holstein, creative director of Khaite, caught our eye with a set of buttery yellow mid and high rise boots for Pre-Fall.

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Louis Vuitton Fall 21 RTW

Nicolas Ghesquière extended the buttery tone into Fall 21 with the Louis Vuitton RTW collection.

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Nanushka SS21

Nanushka created menswear that hits on the buttery hues of the year.

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A Side of Butter: Jil Sander leather scrunchie, Bottega Venata clutch and loafers.

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White Funeral Meal by Marjie Vogelzang

Marije Vogelzang explores food concepts via art. With her famous “White Funeral Meal” she looks at white and buttery tones with a new perspective. ‘Unlike western society, most cultures associate the color white with death. this meal consists entirely of white food and especially designed white crockery. in this serene atmosphere next of kin can share a meal and their memories’.²

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Faye TooGood Assemblage 6 at Friedman Benda

Not unlike the discovery of a butter sculpture, designer Faye Toogood sought to carve a new alphabet of geometry with her most recent Assemblage 06, which focuses on unlearning. Highlighted at the Freidman Benda gallery in NYC and with a publication created in collaboration Apartamento, we can follow her journey of maquette-making and the material explorations that are so integral to her work. ³

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Helle Mardahl

Helle Mardahl is an artist and designer who designs unique mouth-blown glass lamps and objects with organic shapes. Buttery tones weave through her work.

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Do Ho Suh New York Apartment

Artist Do Ho Suh’s works elicit a physical manifestation of memory, exploring ideas of personal history, cultural tradition, and belief systems in the contemporary world through full-size, fabric reconstructions of his former residences. Above, shows his NYC apartment rendered in buttery organza.⁴

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Sara Berman’s Closet

Inspired by the beauty and meaning of Sara Berman's closet, the artists Maira and Alex Kalman (who are also Berman's daughter and grandson) have recreated her closet and its contents as an art installation where they lovingly organized her shoes, clothes, linens, beauty products, luggage, and other necessities. Although the clothing is of various tints—including buttery cream, ivory, and ecru—it gives the impression of being all white.⁵

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TLDR; KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Butter is showing up for both SS21 and FW21, in men’s and women’s collections, as well as home accessories.

• From organza, to leather, to glass, butter is a compelling tone in many substrates.

• Food and fashion aesthetics are intertwined.

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Observing the trend / To participate in this trend, consider using as a sartorial pop as an accessory or apply tonally and texturally for a full look.

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Applying the trend / Consider how food and fashion inform one another. When looking for color inspiration, look to everyday food items like butter.

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Subverting the trend / Ignore color inspiration and wear only black, like Josef.

SOURCES

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¹@lailacooks
²marijevogelzang.nl
³friedmanbenda.com
⁴lacma.com
⁵metmuseum.org

PHOTO CREDITS

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Butter Sculptures ^{Laila Gohar}
Butter Sculptures ^{Laila Gohar}
Acne Studios SS21 ^{Courtesy of Acne Studios}
Acne Studios SS21 ^{Courtesy of Acne Studios}
Acne Studios SS21 ^{Courtesy of Acne Studios}
Gia Studios SS21 ^{Courtesy of Gia Studios}
Gia Studios SS21 ^{Courtesy of Gia Studios}
Khaite Pre-Fall 21 ^{Courtesy of Khaite}
Khaite Pre-Fall 21 ^{Courtesy of Khaite}
Khaite Pre-Fall 21 ^{Courtesy of Khaite}
Louis Vuitton FW21 ^{Courtesy of Louis Vuitton}
Louis Vuitton FW21 ^{Courtesy of Louis Vuitton}
Louis Vuitton FW21 ^{Courtesy of Louis Vuitton}
Nanushka SS21 ^{Courtesy of Nanushka}
Nanushka SS21 ^{Courtesy of Nanushka}
Nanushka SS21 ^{Courtesy of Nanushka}
Jil Sander Scrunchie ^{Courtesy of Jil Sander}
Bottega Venata Clutch ^{Courtesy of SSENSE}
Bottega Venata Loafers ^{Courtesy of SSENSE}
Marije Vogelzang ^{Courtesy of Marije Vogelzang}
Marije Vogelzang ^{Courtesy of Marije Vogelzang}
Faye Toogood Assemblage 06 ^{Courtesy of Faye Toogood}
Faye Toogood Assemblage 06 ^{Courtesy of Faye Toogood}
Faye Toogood Assemblage 06 ^{Courtesy of Faye Toogood}
Helle Mardahl ^{Courtesy of Helle Mardahl}
Helle Mardahl ^{Courtesy of Helle Mardahl}
Helle Mardahl ^{Courtesy of Helle Mardahl}
Do Ho Suh ^{Courtesy of Lacma}
Sara Berman's Closet ^{Courtesy of The Met}