Scrunched sleeves flounce, vinyl skirt suits are cinched and ready for action and mixed metal buckles jangle riotously. Unexpected reveals are found in a double-breasted silk blazer with an open back. Meanwhile thighs are exposed in figure skimming dresses and deconstructed cowboy boots are made for strutting. And as for the woman wearing these exquisite pieces, in the words of her creator, “She is dressed to kill yet hiding in plain sight”.  This is the MA collection from HEAD-Geneva graduate Tara Mabiala, and it is a thing of rare beauty.

Entitled ‘When She Left The Room The Spirits Went With Her’, the Swiss Congolese designer’s work draws on the seemingly disparate references of 1970s Blaxploitation, cowboy movies and Congolese ‘uniform’ dressing (when friends and family all have unique outfits made from the same fabric for a special occasion). It’s a collection that shouldn’t work, but it really does. And the reason that this fusion makes so much sense is that it’s coming from a place of joy. “My inspirations were first and foremost anchored in personal pleasure. I wanted to have fun with things that I liked,” Mabiala explains.

Take the floral jacquard ensemble - the excessive volume in the sleeves and the head to toe look is pure DRC swagger, while its form fitting silhouette channels the fearlessness of heroines such as Pam Grier. Details like multiple bra straps hanging loose and bouncy ruffles have an air of total self-confidence. The trench coat is given a twist with an outlandish shape that brings to mind a garment in movement. “I looked at how the clothes in westerns help set an atmosphere - dustcoats that are same colour as the earth and flap in the wind against gun holsters.”

The glorious mash-up of ostentatious design influences is reflected in the anything-goes egalitarian approach to textiles – jerseys and denims sit alongside shearling, bazin and jacquard. The young talent also worked with a buckle factory to create the unorthodox jewellery and enlisted her dad to craft the shoe that sits within the upcycled vintage cowboy boot: “My character wants to wear two shoes at the same time and nothing will stop her.”

And to breathe life into her vision she called upon photographer James Bantone for the lookbook. “We wanted there to be a sense of defiance in the pictures as well as a notion of ‘waiting’. His vibrant style allowed for the spirit and atmosphere of the collection to truly shine through and our shared Congolese heritage made for a very natural collaboration.”

Read about Tara Mabiala’s BA collection here.