RIO SS ‘27

Geometry, Color, and Nature Came Together for Designer Rio Uribe

Written by KRISTOPHER FRASER

Luis Ramiro Barragán is one of Mexico’s most renowned architects and engineers. For decades, his work has influenced contemporary architects, artists, and other creatives. Among those creatives in the 2020s is designer Rio Uribe of his namesake label Rio, who was inspired by Barragán’s home, Casa Luis Barragán, known for its pink walls. Barragán used pink walls in several of his most prominent masterworks, including San Cristóbal and Casa Pedregal. 

Rio’s spring 2027 collection drew on geometry, vibrant colors, and nature. Titled “Horizons,” the collection explored the feeling of looking forward, with themes of the optimism of new life, the possibility of growth, and the promise of new beginnings. It is a fitting theme for any fashion collection, as fashion is always about newness. 

The color palette included sun-faded pinks, deep cyan indigos, and green, all inspired by landscapes and architectural environments. The nature inspiration went beyond the color palette and informed the technical approach of the designs as well. Blue botanical cyanotypes were individually printed, turning plant life into photographic fabric. Shirting and denim were naturally dyed with beets and berries, while Rio turned repurposed wood and aluminum from past collections and projects into jewelry. 

In an age when fashion is attempting to become more sustainable so we can have a planet in the future, Rio’s approach to dyeing garments and repurposing deadstock materials to create jewelry is highly sustainable, reducing chemicals that pollute our water and material waste. The approach to sustainability harkens back to the theme of looking forward, as fashion must take a more sustainable approach to production for the sake of our future. 

Some silhouettes may have seemed more on the avant-garde side, but Rio was inspired by the shapes of flowers and carnivorous plants. The skirts of several pink ensembles resembled bloomed flowers. Floral motifs were also found as prints on shirts and in elaborate collars, and models even carried bouquets to take the floral inspiration to a literal place. 

Rio’s spring 2027 runway show was held at The Lighthouse. Uribe was very international with his choice of venue, holding the show at The Lighthouse, a creative campus with locations in Brooklyn, where the show was held, as well as a campus in Venice Beach, CA. The mission of the Lighthouse is to enable and empower career creatives and professionals. 

The Lighthouse has helped fuel Rio’s collection from the earliest stages. It was where he held his open casting, fittings, and collection preview. The venue saw his creative process for his runway show from the time the Los Angeles-based designer and his team landed in New York until the finale walk of the show. 

Uribe continues pushing boundaries with his collections, blending gender fluidity, sportswear, and out-of-the-box fashion into one collection to build the Rio world. Uribe is building a better future for fashion and has given audiences a new sense of optimism.

Photos courtsey of TMRW PR