VICTOR BANKS SPARKS OF EXCITEMENT

PORTFOLIO.1707

COLORS OF EXCITEMENT

i.s.1707

by Jo Reiner Widjaja

One cannot restrain the fact that new years bring new excitements, people start to retrospect past doings and they start to write new resolutions, its a transitional time. The same goes to the creative fashion industry they retrospect the past collection whilst trying to come up with a fresh take on designs, a transition between the old and the new. That being said just like other any transitions, phases of it are brought up gradually to lessen the the big shock of change, in other words new excitements must stay true to their voice whilst aligning itself with new concepts.  Victor Banks with their Sunday Sketch; Spring Summer 2012 collection has succeed to do just that, bringing up new designs while staying true to their  old charms of a timeless vintage feel and a refined craftsmanship to soften trend changes. New excitements sparks with the use of refreshing light colors of sky blues and yellows while old charms are kept with a polished look with refined stitchings complemented by vintage accessories such as bow ties and case totes.  

Sebagai seorang pribadi, seseorang tidak dapat menyangkal kenyataan bahwa selalu tahun baru membawa begitu banyak harapan akan kegembiraan yang baru. Seseorang selalu menantikan hal-hal baru sembari melihat seluruh hal yang telah mereka capai di tahun sebelumnya, waktu ini ialah waktu transisi. Hal yang sama terjadi pada industri fesyen kreatif, dimana banyal labels dan brands yang menelaah ulang segala koleksi lalu yang mereka miliki, dan mencoba untuk menggali ide-ide baru bagi desain yang segar. Sepeti masa transisi lainnya tahapan perubahaan ini pun dibawa secara bertahap demi mengurangi dampak dari perubahaan. Victor Banks dengan koleksi lini Sunday Sketch; Musim Spring dan Summer 2012 mereka telah berhasil melakukan hal tersebut, membawa perubahan tanpa memberi dampak shock yang begitu besar. Victor Banks telah berhasil membawa desain-desian baru yang pada saat bersamaan tetap setia pada daya tarik mereka, dimana kegembiraan baru dipercikan dengan penggunaan warna yang menarik seperti sky blue, dan light yellow sementara daya tarik lama diabadikan dengan penampilan yang tereksekusi dengan baik dan detail penjahitan yang penuh dengan keahlian. Selurih penampilan pun memiliki kesan vintage dengan aksesoris yang timeless dengan dasi kupu-kupu bermotif dan case tote.

 William Poplin Shirt with Herringbone Weave

 Gerald Canvas Jacket accessorized with Bruce Batwing Bowtie

Soft Washed Edward Cotton Twill Pants 

Ronald Denim Shorts with Lined Cuffs

Custom Dyed Robert Buttonless Shirt

Mickey Knit Cardigan 

Victor Banks in its third collection uses subtle hues and light weight fabrics, they presented us with clean looks for spring and summer wardrobes, with the use of custom-dyed poplin, treated denim, cotton twills, and soft canvas which really do seem appropriate in a tropical country like Indonesia. "Comfortable, classic, and durable" are what Victor Banks aims for, every pieces are pre-shrunk and specially stitched for long life to ensure quality. And their leather goods derived from authentic 100% cow hide. In the midst of the local brand rise Victor Banks gave us fresh perspective with its Canadian heritage roots, playing with simplicity and a timeless sartorial feel, whilst many other brand tries so hard with extravagant details that seemed too flamboyant, Cole Johnson's direction with simple details makes the pieces a more masculine, but with a fresh take on colors. Who knew a man could wear a fitted sky blue shirt without being perceived as too flamboyant? Look them up at www.victor-banks.com

Victor Banks dalam koleksi ketiganya menggunakan subtle hues dan bahan ringan, dimana mereka mengelaborasikannya menjadi penampilan yang cocok bagi musim semi dan panas. Kenyamanan, gaya yang klasik, dan tahan lama merupakan aspek-aspek yang dicoba untuk diraih dimana hal tersebut direalisasikan dengan eksekusi yang sempurna. Di dalam masyarakat yang begitu menggebuh-gebuh dengan semangat brand lokal, Victor Banks memberikan pandangan yang segar dengan akar budaya yang dibawakan oleh Cole Johnson, detail yang sederhana dipadukan dengan ilmu tailor yang timeless, membuat koleksinya begitu maskulin walau pun menggunakan warna yang begitu cerah. Siapa sangka penggunaan  kemeja yang pas di tubuh dengan warna terang tidak akan membuat orang terlihat flamboyant?

 Bruce Bowtie - Alfred Bowtie - Kent Pointed Slim Tie

Maurice Multi-Purpose Roll Kit 

Ross Leather Laptop Case with Quilted Lining

It's a sin not to share the savviness of these indie talents with the rest of the world.

So. Feel free to explore.exploit.and express your brain out.

explore.exploit.express

i.s.1707

VICTOR BANKS; ROUGHLY POLISHED

PORTFOLIO.1707

VICTOR BANKS

i.s.1707
by Jo Reiner Widjaja

"Men are simple, they put on a clean shirt pair it with a great pants, and finish the look with some awesome shoes, and they're done."  Yea, we wish that were true, but the fact is nowadays men are as just as complicated as women when it comes to putting on an outfit. Or probably in someways men are even more complicated! How? Well for starters, men have tendencies to want to be looked in a certain way by people; They want to look stylish but not so well put together that it shows that they're putting too much effort on it. They want a suave style yet still rugged and effortless, something easy and simple but still owns that cool factor. Polished yet rough. Introducing Victor Banks, a Indonesian based label with a Canadian designer as its creative head. 

"Men are simple, they put on a clean shirt pair it with a great pants, and finish the look with some awesome shoes, and they're done." Yea, kita berharap hal itu adalah kenyataan, tetapi faktanya hari-hari ini pria sudah memiliki kerumitan berpakaian sama seperti wanita. Atau bahkan mungkin saja pria lebih rumit daripada wanita! Bagaimana bisa? Well, for starters, pria memiliki kebiasaan untuk ingin terlihat dalam pandangan tertentu oleh sekitarnya; Mereka ingin terlihat stylish tetapi tidak terlalu rapi sehingga terlihat terlalu berusaha. Mereka menginginkan gaya yang suave (charming, polished, sophisticated) tetapi  memiliki sentuhan yang kasar dan terkesan effortless, sesuatu yang terlihat sederhana tetapi masih memiliki faktor coolness tersebut. Polished yet rough. Perkenalkan Victor Banks, sebuah label Indonesia yang dimulai oleh seorang Canadian Designer. 

Inspired by classic men's style, vintage work wear, and Canadian heritage look, Victor Banks really does represent a polished look that's sophisticated but with an added edge of casual wear in it. An awesome line that we identify as a roughly polished menswear. Establish in 2010, Victor Banks now within its first year of existence reminds us very much of early shades of Carlos Campos's designs. Carlos Campos, a New York menswear label that recently named one of the finalists of Vogue CFDA 2011 Fashion Fund. Carlos Campos is a label that has always been known to embodies the epitome of a man's suave style, redefining classic man's style with a twist of today's edge and retro fashion. And we do see a lot of Carlos Campos's early existence and designs in Victor Banks's. We think with more attentions to details and more craftsmanship Victor Banks is looking up to a very bright future. 

Terinspirasi dari gaya klasik lelaki, pakaian vintage, dan Canadian heritage look, Victor Banks benar-benar merepresentasikan penampilan-penampilan yang polished dan sophisticated  ditambah dengan sentuhan gaya yang edgy sebagai pakaian siap pakai. Sebuah lini yang awesome, dan dapat kami sebut roughly polished. Berdiri sejak tahun 2010, Victor Banks yang masih dalam tahun pertama-nya mengingatkan kami terhadap jejak awal Carlos Campos. Carlos Campos adalah salah satu designer New York yang baru-baru ini dinobatkan sebagai salah satu finalis Vogue CFDA Fashion Fund. Carlos Campos adalah lini pakaian pria yang telah dikenal untuk menjiwai puncak gaya lelaki, meredefinisikan gaya klasik lelaki dengan sentuhan gaya edgy masa kini dan sesuatu yang bersifat retro fashion. Kami dapat melihat banyak gaya dari Carlos Campos yang dicoba untuk di implementasikan dalam desain Victor Banks. Kami berpendapat dengan lebih banyak perhatian akan details dan dengan lebih banyak penggunaan teknik, Victor Banks akan memiliki masa depan yang cerah. 

Image Courtesy of Carlos Campos New York

Victor Banks's first collection, "The Timeless Now" displayed clean looks with buttoned up shirts, symmetrical prints t-shirts paired with tailored tapered pants, and what's interesting is;  Cole Johnson the designer for Victor Banks gives the looks a little twist by playing with details. Camel colored fabrics used as belt loops and pocket lines of the pants giving an awesome effect in its pairing with the grey/cognac colored pants. The looks were accessorized with skinny belt, bow tie, suspenders, and leather boots. The looks were utterly clean and polished, casual and down to earth.    


Koleksi pertama Victor Banks, "The Timeless Now" menunjukan tampilan-tampilan looks yang bersih dan polished dengan buttoned up shirts, symmetrical prints t-shirts yang dipadukan dengan tailored tapered pants. Dan hal yang menarik; Cole Johnson sang designer untuk Victor Banks menunjukan sedikit sentuhan gaya dengan menambakan looks dengan detail-detail kecil. Penggunaan kain berwarna camel sebagai belt loops dan pocket lines yang dipadukan dengan tailored pants berwarna grey/cognac. Selain itu tampilan looks yang ada pun di aksesoriskan dengan skinny belt, bow tie, suspenders, dan boot kulit. Tampilan looks yang sangat bersih, polished, casual, dan down to earth.

Whilst for their second collection, Victor Banks are showing a collection that's fully inspired by Bandits, Bohemians, and Bachelors. Shirts detailed with indian-esque prints, knitted sweater with heavy texture and bold color, dyed tapered pants, and even a metal button detailed hunting pants. The model showcasing the looks was screaming "bandit" inspired figure, styled with bohemian outfits, and was accessorized with a classic newspaper boy hat and fringed suede boots. 


Sedangkan untuk koleksi keduanya Victor Banks menunjukan koleksi yang terinspirasi dari Bandits, Bohemians, dan Bachelors. Kemeja-kemeja yang di detailkan dengan print yang memiliki gaya indian, sweater rajutan dengan tekstur yang berat dalam warna yang bold. Selain itu Victor Banks pun menampilkan dyed tapered pants, dan hunting pants yang di embellished dengan kancing logam. Sang model dalam campaign-nya pun memiliki penampilan yang sangat cocok dengan tema yang ada, it screams "Bandits!", dimana sang model di padukan dengan gaya pakaian bernuansa bohemians, dan di aksesoriskan dengan classic newspaper boy hat dan fringed suede boots. 

Victor Banks really does provide us with polished looks that would still look rough at the same time. Where guys could still look sophisticated yet rugged. You can find their products on  The Goods Dept (Jakarta), Somewhere (Bali), and Blackmarket (Singapore).

It will be a sin not to share the savviness of these indie talents with the rest of the world.

So. Feel free to explore.exploit.and express your brain out.

explore.exploit.express

i.s.1707