CNC’s Guide To New York Fashion Week’s Highlights
This season NY Fashion week gave us an insight into the trends for AW19. In a nutshell it was a kaleidoscope of colour, fake news and an amalgamation of white, black and gold. Alice Morey picks out her favourite shows…
Alice and Olivia
Take a trip into the wonderful world of Fantasia through the eyes of Alice and Olivia for their Fall 2019 collection.
Gothic florals and studded sequin minis in an extravaganza of colour and a variety of silhouettes dominated the collection. Colossal flower walls crammed with rich, red roses and sky-blue hydrangeas proved a vibrant and sumptuous backdrop. Heavily embellished full skirted gowns brimming with beads and sequins, layered with a co-ordinating cape showed how transitional layering does not have to compromise your parade of prints, but instead exaggerates and brings a whole new way to style your day to evening wear. Dare to bare, with the integration of a cut-out, plunge v-necks and a thigh high split on a zebra print midi-skirt saw Alice and Olivia move away from their usual clean-cut conservative silhouettes.
“Everyone wants their Instagram moment.” said designer Stacey Bendet in a backstage interview. Something seen in the presentation where sequin embossed t-shirts read “Strong Female Protagonist”, “Grateful” and “Go Love Yourself” accompanied by a rainbow feathered skirt provided insta-worthy moments. Injections of animal print spliced through the collection to put a halt to the bombardment of butterfly and psychedelic tones. Have your very own romance in red ruffles with a long staggered layered A-line plated skirt. Details continue with plumes of pleating on a floor length maxi skirt. Co-ordination was key with head to toe looks created in the same butterfly motif with accents of snake skin boots and relaxed oversized velvet jackets.
Ralph Lauren
A morning call, for the Ralph Lauren Spring show 2019 saw a celebration of craftsmanship with a symphony of white and black, gilded with gold. Each look careful curated and effortlessly worn presenting a timeless elegance and the strength of inner womanhood. Speaking to Vogue after the show the designer said, “I wanted to create an intimate experience to share my vision in a more personal way,” in his new café on Madison Avenue breakfast was served to the company of a paired down wearable beauty, ready for the see-now-buy-now customer. Trousers pluming with fabric, full and skirt like cascaded down the staircase. Suiting and tailoring took centre stage from the nipped in waisted jacket to the crisp white oversized floor length double breasted evening coat contrasted by the relaxed metallic, space age take on the bomber jacket. A mixture of textile and finishing added depth and a nod to the structure and rigidity of the military.
Out with the LBD and in with the black jumpsuit. Jumpsuits were aplenty on the runway with signature palazzo legs and accented by gold belts. Sparkle and shine in all things sequin. The crescendo of the show saw the visionary appearance of Bella Hadid emerging in a plunging V-neck gown with ruching on the bodice falling into a midi length, A-line pleated skirt, drenched in gold sequins.
Jeremy Scott
Breaking news, monochrome madness and a bombardment of fake news dominated the Jeremy Scott Fall Winter 2019 – 2020 collection in collaboration with artist Aleksandra Mir. In a side step from the usual cacophony of colour, garments where printed in news print with buzz words, such as ‘killer’, ‘scandal’, ‘panic’ and ‘psycho’. The collection was less about the effects of the media, but rather the need for a constant stream of content and a reactionary clickbait, based consumer. With both male and female models taking to the runway demonstrating the universal infiltration capacity fake news has.
Layers of tulle petticoats filled skirts, as well as creating tulle overlays. Perhaps evoking the fragility and deception of fake news found online. Soft tulle skirts were coupled with sculptural bodice’s and an oversized trench coat. In contrast to the tulle, leather biker jackets added a hardness to the collection. Small minis walking along side sprayed in Swarovski crystals, highlighting how enticing the allure of fake news can be. Sheer PVC layers emphasized the shocking trigger words. Models balanced large oversized hair bows or encrusted berets, suggesting that fake news is non-discriminatory to age, gender or nationality.
Images via Vogue.com
Written by Alice Morey, BA Fashion Communication
BA Fashion Communication Year 1