words Alexa Wang
I love these this latest collection from Florentina Leitner. It is inspired of course by Joan of Arc. She is a complicated hero. She battled against us English and so was a war hero in her native France.
More lately though she’s seen as a feminist icon. She purportedly cut off of her own hair in order to cement her authority in a male dominated military and there are indeed images from the time which show her with unusually short hair. She was eventually burnt at the stake. It seems the authorities could not copy with a woman of her stature and power in that era.
With her latest collection Leitner was influenced by the film ‘The Passion of Joan of Arc’ by Carl Theodor Dreyer and its visual and conceptual style. The actresses Milla Jovovich, Jean Oseberg and Ingrid Bergman, the actresses who played “Jeanne” also served to influence the designer as she set about producing the collection.
Leitner imagines that Jeanne survives the flames and is reborn like a phoenix from the fire. Like flowers blooming from the ashes she rises. You can see influences from the medieval in the garments and strong vibrant colours and forms act as armour for contemporary women embued with the spirit of Joan of Arc.
About Florentina Leitner
Austrian Fashion Designer Florentina Leitner launched her Fashion Brand 2022 after graduating from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. The Belgium based brand creates RTW Womenswear Collections with a semi couture touch, floral, feminine and fun, Florentina’s signature. Already known for its prints and 3D flowers, the brand produces its collections in small artisanal factories in Italy. Florentina has also quickly become a brand loved by celebrities and fashion icons all over the world.
