Jean Louis Sabaji Unveils His Jaw-Dropping Spring/Summer 2016 Collection

Lebanese designer Jean Louis Sabaji has been dubbed “the Alexander McQueen of the Middle East”, which is an apt comparison for someone who takes such a conceptual approach to design. The decadent fantasies that underscore his work are fluidly constructed into architectural silhouettes that tell a story. For Spring/Summer 2016, Sabaji named his collection ‘Daub’ in reference to the painterly daubs of color that enliven every surface. His candy-hued gowns and minidresses drip with sublime, couture-level details that revel in the mix and matching of multi-colored shapes and patterns.

Each of Sabaji’s collections plays to a theme, and the artistic streak of this one does not go unnoticed. The hand-painted elements of the clothes are reflected throughout the lookbook in the model’s hair and makeup, which also bears a paint-on-canvas effect. In essence, Sabaji is fusing the creativity of fashion design with the concept of “fashion as art”, and the results are nothing short of astonishing. As an avant-garde designer, Sabaji is not designing for the everyday wardrobe so much as the outer limits of where fashion can take the sartorial sojourner. That being said, for Spring/Summer 2016 he includes a few daywear-friendly pieces, like a painted sweatshirt with oversized sleeves.