Spice Girl platforms were revived at Victoria Beckham's autumn/winter 2020 show on 16 February. Worn with chic tailoring and pulled high above the knee, the designer used them as a way of juxtaposing the kind of polished looks that have become her USP.
The platform boots were the predominant footwear of the collection, and styled with tweed skirts, culottes, cropped trousers and billowing dresses. They represented, as Beckham said herself, a "tension between refinement and rebellion", injecting a subversive appeal to elegant looks.
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Victoria Beckham AW20
"I was inspired by different ideas of women – different characters, different moments and different attitudes – but with no restrictions," she said. "The overriding sentiment that we don’t have to follow the rules. We can follow our instincts. Be spirited."
The popularity of kitten heels and 90s-inspired barely-there sandals have meant that platforms have taken a backseat in recent years. However, they were the perfect tough-meet-sexy accomplice for to Beckham's tweed-heavy, tailored collection.
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Photo: Getty
Victoria Beckham AW20
Photo: Getty
Victoria Beckham AW20
Photo: Getty
Victoria Beckham AW20
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Also, new for this season was the introduction of a shorter hemline. While midi skirts and dresses have become pervasive over the last few years, Beckham debuted a knee-length style that she thinks imbues fashion's new mood.
"The silhouette has evolved with a newness, a freshness," she said in her show notes. "Shorter abbreviated proportions feel different and right for now. I wanted to explore how to honour tradition but challenge convention. To be subversive yet still sophisticated. Classic heritage fabrics are rethought, shapes and combinations are remixed with a new spontaneity and playfulness.
"The collection is about staying true to ourselves and our woman, but still surprising her, and us. Twisting our codes. This is what I call my gentle rebellion."
This article originally appeared on Harper's BAZAAR UK.