Canadian science-fiction critic Darko Suvin described the genre as producing “cognitive estrangement,” a term indicating a slight shift in reality that forces you to look again.

A similar plot device underpinned Kiko Kostadinov’s spring collection, where instead of splashy displays he worked minute disruptions to familiar garments to create a subtle sense of otherness. Think the wardrobe of Disney+ space opera-meets-political drama “Andor.”

Changes were few but they were enough to catch the eye: a straight three-quarter coat with its closure two or three centimeters off-center; a blazer with buttons placed in four points instead of the usual two rows of two; trouser hems with buttons and openings that made you wonder about their construction, and pockets with curved openings placed in unusual asymmetric ways that nonetheless felt like natural resting places for the hand.

Handkerchief-hem dusters and long tunics felt novel compared to Western-style shirts, jackets and trousers, but read like shapes fit for warm‑weather dressing derived from other cultures and times — without a hint of appropriation.

Kostadinov named Italian artist and draughtsman Agostino Bonalumi, in particular his “Extroflexion” works, as an inspiration, while a dozen lamps with curving tensile outlines by Japanese designer Kazuhide Takahama served as the runway backdrop. But those browsing the racks come spring won’t need to know that to have their curiosity piqued.