Simone Rocha Finds a New Muse in the Awkward Teenager

"Inspired by the unruly energy of Justine Kurland’s photography, the SS26 collection explores the adolescent innocence and experience with pillow bags and subversive occasionwear."

"A sequin bralette and sheer embroidered skirt from Simone Rocha SS26, a collection that explored the contradictions of adolescent dressing. Credit: Simone Rocha"

Simone Rocha’s SS26 collection offered a portrait of the volatile territory of early adolescence. Drawing on the unruly energy of Justine Kurland’s photographs and the formative angst of Maureen Freely’s essay “My Dress Rehearsal,” Rocha presented a cast of characters on the verge. This was not a nostalgic ode to girlhood, but a sensitive, exacting exploration of its precarious contradictions: the conflict between innocence and experience, primness and punk.

A crinoline hoop gives shape to a sheer floral skirt, evoking the feeling of a dress rehearsal

The collection's severe tailoring often dissolved into fragile materials

An Icelandic poppy motif on a satin gown with exaggerated sleeves

"Rocha’s signature romanticism was subverted through material and silhouette, with structured coats dissolving into organza and crinoline hoops exposed beneath sheer skirts."

Structured satin ballgowns, the traditional uniform of fantasy, were subverted when layered over printed long-sleeve tops or shielded by plastic capes, grounding fairytale silhouettes in an awkward reality. Rocha’s signature talent for marrying strength with fragility was on full display as tailored elements dissolved into sheer, delicate organza within a single garment. Chartreuse dresses with exaggerated, padded hips reshaped the body, suggesting a young woman experimenting with the power and bravado of a new form.

The pillow-bag, clutched like a shield, became a poignant symbol of the comfort and self-protection

Menswear looks, like this draped suit with a fresh lily, extended the collection's themes of fragile

A classic trench coat is twisted and draped, its utility undone to create something more complex

"Narrative details were key to the collection's story, from the symbolic pillow-bags to fresh flowers that suggested a fleeting, precious beauty."

It was the details that articulated the specific, intimate story of this in-between age. Sequin bralettes slipped from beneath flower organza skirts, evoking the fumbled elegance of a first dance. Models clutched ruffled-edge bags disguised as silk pillows, a poignant gesture of both comfort and self-protection. The styling itself operated as a narrative device; with messy hair and defiant, crossed-arm stances, the runway became a stage for the drama of constructing an identity.

The collection’s most potent symbol of subversion appeared on foot. The Simone Rocha x Crocs “Ballerina Platform” crashes the high romance of the ballet point shoe into the mundane, anti-fashion utility of a Croc. Rendered for the show in black and oyster with sculptural bow motifs, the shoe is the perfect artefact for this world. It is the footwear of a girl who dreams of being a princess but is already running away from the castle.

A transparent plastic cape over a sequinned floral coat

Vinyl outerwear also appeared in the menswear, its synthetic nature contrasting with the traditional

A giant satin rose appliqué, another of Rocha’s signature motifs, brought a dress-up quality

"The collection’s subversive spirit was clear in its material play, from plastic capes layered over sequins to surreal floral details that challenged traditional menswear."

With this collection, Simone Rocha solidifies her status as one of fashion’s most essential storytellers. She has moved beyond simply making beautiful clothes to redefine occasionwear as a site of complex emotional narrative. By finding the radical power in vulnerability and the beauty in the awkward spaces of growing up, Rocha proves once again that the most compelling fashion articulates the flawed, hopeful, and unruly truth of being human.