The craft of cutting is intended to shape the body, and define its existence and cultural meaning. Eroticizing the body, covering it and creating a screen that stands between the inner space and the space that surrounds it from the outside. Clothing can therefore be seen as a pathway to becoming, as a central sign which faces inward and outward, to the intimate space and the public space, while exposing or absorbing its secrets.

In the AW23 collection, Yonathan Carmel the founder and designer of VAUTRAIT tried to find and define the dialogue between “you” and “I”. The search or perhaps what the “I” looks like through your eyes, as an observer, while “you” are the only one who can never really see yourself except as an image or reflection. “I am interested in seeing my eyes only when they look at you.”

VAUTRAIT brings together traditional crafts and techniques with a contemporary vision. The collection is crafted from quality materials and designed for everyday wear with space for more allure, something captivating and dramatic without disconnecting from the realities of daily life. It’s mature but playful with an elegant embrace. There is something expected howeverunexpected. It’s feminine but masculine, classic but sexy, and perfectly disproportionate.

The AW23 collection is composed of sharply tailored pieces such as jackets and trousers accompanied by a wide range of shirts in a variety of cotton and silks in a classic colour pallet, dresses and oversized outerwear with exaggerated shoulder shapes. This season’s suit is oversized and masculine, yet feminine which emphasizes the lines of the body. In other words, there is a dialectical moment between menswear and womenswear that does not necessarily synthesize a genderless garment, but rather a situation in which the garment emphasizes the relationship between a man and a woman without defining them or setting them apart by words and language.

The looks are styled with eye-catching accessories such as the leather scarf bag or the time-piece belt delicately leaning on the waist showing both the feminine shapes and time. A watch is a timepiece. But a timepiece does more than just tell the time. Here, it’s used with the intention to bring different time periods together, a vintage watch worn in a contemporary way.

VAUTRAIT presents a merge of precision and versatility by exploring combinations of silhouettes in an excessive, deconstructed but balanced way with a notion of drama. It’s a play of proportion.

“If I am (following) this suite [si je suis cette suite], and everything in what I am about to say will lead back to the question of what ‘‘to follow’’ or ‘‘to pursue’’ means, as well as ‘‘to be after,’’ back to the question of what I do when ‘‘I am’’ or ‘‘I follow,’’ when I say ‘‘Je suis,’’ Jacques Derrida, L’animal que donc je suis.