SKALL SS26: “La Danse : Act II” lets the dresses do the choreography

Camz
Aug 13
3 min read

The Garden as a Stage That Doesn’t Need a Spotlight

On a perfect late-summer morning in Copenhagen, the garden of Designmuseum Danmark looked as if it had been waiting all season for SKALL’s return. White chairs in neat rows, soft green lawns, and the kind of still air that makes you lower your voice without realising.

w≈No flashing strobes, no heavy beats, just three classical musicians quietly tuning their instruments. The show began without fanfare, almost as if it had been happening all along and we had just stumbled in. The audience leaned forward. Somewhere in the back, someone had already taken their shoes off.

A Collection That Breathes Before It Speaks

“La Danse – Act II” is SKALL’s way of saying movement matters, but you don’t have to hit every count. While last season’s Pre-Spring took us into the discipline of the dancer’s world : the early mornings, the precise positions, the blisters hidden under satin : SS26 is about the moment you stop rehearsing and start feeling. The clothes are shaped for instinct, not instruction.

Silhouettes in No Rush to Impress You

The collection glows in early morning light, both in palette and in attitude. Silhouettes flow around the body instead of gripping it. Dresses open at the hem to catch the breeze as if they’ve been practising for this exact moment. Skirts are long enough to swish, but light enough to forget you’re wearing them. Blouses fall softly from the shoulder, never stiff, often tied in ways that look improvised : in the way dancers always seem to look put together without trying. Fabrics are natural fibres, kissed by sun-washed tones, from warm creams to faded rose and pale olive.

When Liberty Prints Decide to Dance

Small Liberty floral prints weave in with SKALL’s signature clean lines. They don’t scream vintage, they whisper it. There is a kind of nostalgia here, but it is selective memory : not everything from the past is worth bringing back. On light cotton dresses and softly structured skirts, the prints move with the models as though the flowers themselves were taking part in the choreography.

Accessories That Grew in a Garden Before the Runway

For the first time, SKALL introduces accessories, and in true SKALL fashion they are not what you expect. No high-shine exotic skins, but materials born from Sicilian oranges and cactus byproducts. Bags, belts, and shoes appear in soft matte finishes, quietly undermining the idea that luxury leather has to come from an animal. This is sustainability with an almost impolite level of elegance : the kind that makes you question why it is still considered niche.

Styling That Refuses to Overdress

Jasmine Hassett handled the styling, keeping the mood as airy as the collection itself. Hair looked like it had been gathered on the walk over to the show. Jewellery came from Le Sundial, sculptural yet soft, like something a dancer would throw on after rehearsal when she still has stage lighting in her mind but no audience in sight. Nothing felt forced, not even the perfectly imperfect layering that probably took hours to get right.

Music as Fabric for the Space

The live trio played as models moved slowly along the garden paths, the music wrapping around the audience like another layer of fabric. It wasn’t background noise, it was part of the design. The pauses between notes matched the pauses in the models’ steps, creating a rhythm that you felt in your chest more than you heard in your ears.

A Show That Ends Without Really Ending

When the final look walked, there was no big finale. The music faded, conversations rose again, and the clothes seemed to dissolve back into the garden. It was the kind of ending that made you wonder if you should clap or simply breathe in the last of the atmosphere.

SKALL’s SS26 is not about the rush. It is about the space between movements, the softness that follows structure, and the invisible rhythm that guides you when you stop performing.