For Fall 2026, Hodakova explored the uneasy gap between public polish and private vulnerability. Designer Ellen Hodakova Larsson framed the collection around the idea of surface — what we present to the world — and what’s revealed when that façade slips.
At first glance, the lineup looked resolutely professional. Models appeared in elongated city uniforms: sharply cut tuxedo vests paired with tailored trousers, sleeveless trench coats, leather blousons, and utilitarian outerwear reminiscent of classic country jackets. Proportions were stretched and refined, reinforcing a sense of control and authority.
That control dissolved the moment models turned around.
From the back, many looks exposed bare skin or crisp poplin boxer shorts, instantly shifting the narrative from composed to disarmingly intimate. The contrast felt deliberate and unsettling, echoing the tension between curated public identity and the private self beneath it. In a digital age where fashion is mostly consumed head-on through screens, the missing back view became a pointed commentary in itself.
The set reinforced this duality. The show space resembled a pared-down living room — abstract panels for walls, a long wooden table, and a Persian rug that later revealed itself to be wearable when laid flat. Familiar domestic elements blurred the line between personal space and public display.
Hodakova’s signature experimental instinct surfaced throughout. Fur coats were worn back-to-front, their structured shoulders transformed into improvised bustiers. String instrument bows were reconstructed into fringed tops, while even chairs were reimagined as garments — playful gestures that underscored the designer’s talent for radical repurposing.
Beneath the quirk, however, lay a thread of commercial clarity. Hybrid blousons fused half a tailored jacket with casual outerwear, rendered in rich chocolate and navy tones. A checked wool coat appeared surgically altered, sliced away in broad strips and left raw at the edges, turning deconstruction into decoration.
Fall 2026 showed Hodakova balancing conceptual provocation with growing realism. While the collection questioned image-making and vulnerability, it also demonstrated Larsson’s evolving ability to translate ideas into pieces that resonate beyond the runway — garments that confront, amuse, and ultimately feel relevant to the way we dress now.
