Johanna Ortiz Spring 2023 Ready-to-Wear Collection

Johanna Ortiz returned to Paris to present her spring collection, an exuberant celebration of her Spanish and Colombian roots, spiced up with a whirlwind of visual references.

The festive Flamenco spirit which inspired her beginnings was dusted off and given a new spin, and seemed à propos “now that the party season is on again, and we’re in the mood to have a good time,” she said.

Her archival ruffled, off-the-shoulder dresses were slimmed down, made slender and sinuous; the red carnation, which Spanish flamenco dancers wear in their lacquered hair, was translated into abstract blown-up prints; the mantónes de Manila, the traditional tasseled silk shawls gorgeously embroidered in Seville, became sumptuous cover ups or fabulous long-fringed evening dresses.

“When Seville meets Guane in The Year of the Tiger” is how Ortiz described the collection’s dense layers of references. She explained that Guane is an archeological site in Colombia rich in ancestral fossils and pottery traditions, which inspired trompe-l’oeil motifs and the see-through tile pattern embroidered in a series of ankle-grazing eyelet cotton sundress with draped or knotted bodices. While indulging in large-scale prints and bold saturated colors, Ortiz kept silhouettes simple and flattering, with plays of spiraling ruffles and sensual drapings.

For Ortiz, enjoying life rhymes with being “conscious about the world. The woman I dress is ageless, a traveler, and connected to what’s happening around her,” she said. Ortiz keeps sustainably and social responsibility at the heart of her work, and she’s engaged in protecting local traditions and supporting the knowledge of Colombian artisanal communities: 90% of her luxurious collections is locally made in-house in her atelier in Cali, Colombia.