Saddle up for a sharply honest AFW debut
Amsterdam Fashion Week tends to play it safe, but yesterday, Ülkühan gave us something to lean in for. Etnisch Profiteren (translating to “Ethnic Profiting”) is Dutch-Turkish designer Ülkühan’s way of pointing out that fashion has long had a culture-hoarding problem. The title, a sharp wordplay on “ethnic profiling,” speaks directly to his personal experience and broader societal dynamics. It probes that murky space where cultural appreciation turns into cultural… acquisition.
Set in Amsterdam’s oldest horse-riding school, a place where working horses and show ponies coexist, reflecting the tension between being looked at and being used, admiration and appropriation. Guests sat on hay bales while models strutted their horse-walks (Bella Hadid, pay attention).
Silhouettes were asymmetrical and sculptural, made from unconventional 3D materials like insulation foam and stained glass. Equestrian corset-speedo hybrids were worn over tailored blouses, dresses were adorned with tourist-shop magnets referencing the places from which fashion so easily borrows. Models wore “hair boards” that extended their own slicked-back hair into printed panels. Accessories like horsebits as motifs were used throughout.
While the music playing was playful and whimsical, the collection held important political undertones. Masculinity got the full deconstruction treatment. Skirts, tights, soft silhouettes, and some light gender-fuckery gave the collection a breath of fresh, non-toxic air. A special mention to the look constructed entirely from LEGO bricks, an ode to the persistence of guest workers who built their new life brick by brick (literally).
Photography by Lucciana Bolivar
