RIO presented Fall/Winter 2026, titled A Poem & A Protest II, on February 15 in New York, continuing a narrative first introduced in Spring Summer 2026. For this chapter, the brand tightened its focus on duality and pushed it into sharper territory. The collection navigates tension between refinement and resistance, presenting clothing as a tool for both presence and protection.
FALL WINTER 2026.27
Plaid operates as a central code. This season, RIO enlarges its scale and deepens the palette for winter, applying it across tailored pieces and layered silhouettes. Pleated minis and draped separates interact with metallic bikini tops, while high-visibility accents cut through the looks with direct intent. Reflective textiles react to flash photography and stage lighting, transforming each garment into a surface that records movement and energy.
Outerwear drives the collection’s structure. Quilted builds, sculptural puffer shoulders, trapper hats, and sharply constructed coats create volume and authority. RIO engineers these silhouettes for the urban environment, pairing impact with function. Backpacks and sport-inflected details reinforce this direction, grounding the styling in everyday mobility. The pieces read as wearable armor, designed for confrontation, performance, and daily navigation through the city.
The styling introduces explicit civic references. Select looks feature ACLU “ICE OUT” pins, integrated with restraint yet impossible to ignore. Traditional stone and obsidian necklaces rooted in Mexican culture sit against precise tailoring and refined two-piece sets. The layering establishes a dialogue between cultural grounding and contemporary protest codes, expanding the collection’s narrative beyond aesthetics.
RIO chose Jean’s as the setting and reframed the runway as a live performance. Dominican musical artists Planta Industrial performed as models and moshers occupied the same space, collapsing the line between audience and cast. The atmosphere amplified the collection’s message, turning the show into a communal event where music, clothing, and physical movement carried equal weight.
With Fall Winter 2026, RIO advances its exploration of multiplicity. A Poem & A Protest II presents identity as layered, direct, and self-defined. The collection positions fashion within an active social context, where glamour operates alongside grit and where garments function as both expression and defense.
