#COLLECTIONS Raf Simons SS 98 “Black Palms”

  • raf simons ss 98 black palms t shirt story history

This is Raf Simons’ sixth collection but just his second runway show, and the first one to have a name of its own. Black Palms was really ahead of its time (some people didn’t understand his vision even classifying him as a weirdo) and is probably one of the most influential collections in today’s fashion. This was the beginning of ‘slim’ suits and punk graphics/aesthetic which is kind of mainstream nowadays.

It was presented in a Parisian garage with dark techno song and low lightning, evading the whole ‘glamour’ of then’s fashion entering into the underground. The aesthetic is really clear, the models (young, tall and skinny) were wearing wide and low-rise black pants, silver chains hanging around their necks and black graphics painted in there bare torso by the artist Jos Brands. The most known ones are the cover of Sex Pistols’ album ’Never Mind The Bollocks’, the A symbol of anarchy and the black palms by Franky Claeys, whom we have been able to interview.

Black is the predominant color from the dirty sneakers to the blazers, although we can find some white and red colors mainly in shirts and pants. A piece that catches our attention and doesn’t go along with the vibe is the wide rainbow snakeskin print tank-top. It’s worth the mention that this is the first runway Raf uses denim and to this day he’s only use it in another.

A curious quote about this collection is the use of the ‘Black Palms’ iconic graphic on Coca Cola cans in a collaboration with the brand in 2003, along with four other designers

Written by Iñaki Alaba

Spain