The end of an era – Merce Cunningham
The Merce Cunningham Dance Company is in Paris, performing for the last time in The City of Light, their home away from home. The French have always embraced Merce’s work more so than anywhere else in the world. The Company is in its last weeks of their Legacy Tour that began in February 2010 after the passing of Merce in July 2009. After Paris, the Company performs its last 6 performances back home in New York City at the Park Avenue Armory, the last being on New Year’s eve. The company will disband after this final performance and the dancers will go their separate ways. Merce’s works will live on through the Cunningham Dance Foundation.
Anna Finke, wardrobe supervisor and costume designer for the Company’s last performance in New York, has a great preview write up on Vogue.com . The famous unitard makes its last turn at the Armory. These unitards are printed with a series of photographs taken by Anna from the top floor of the Westbeth studio, home to the Company for about four decades. This unitard has had many incarnations, but these designed by Anna will be the last impressions……….ever.
photo courtesy of Thomas Prior and Vogue.com
Sarah Burton’s collection for Alexander McQueen was one of the top collections of this season. Her feminine details and focus on the tiny waist created the most beautiful silhouettes. The movement created by the soft ruffles and peplums were influenced by the movement of jellyfish swimming in the sea as there was a definite oceanic vibe. Sarah Burton’s woman is a goddess…. soft, gentle and beautiful in appearance but don’t mess with her. She has the capability to sting when provoked.
( And as if there weren’t enough blind rumours flying about this week in Paris with designers being plucked from one house to another. The latest is that Ms. Burton is being courted to start her own label. We’ll see…. )
photos courtesy: Marcus Tondo / GoRunway.com
Yohji Yamamoto’s Spring Romance
Yohji Yamamoto is back to his romantic old tricks. Beautiful flow of fabric and draping for the feminine side of his woman and boyish tailoring for the masculine side.
He opened his show with the most beautiful gown in an intense blue violet color with a train covering half the length of the runway. He was in a less somber mood for the upcoming spring as he played with both the feminine and masculine looks. The tailoring was closer to the body and was the fresher side of the collection.
In the end, Mr. Yamamoto, who is the master of designing for both sides of his faithful fans ended up marrying the two harmoniously.
photos: DChen
Lanvin – Alber’s devilish side
Alber Elbaz has a dark side. The s.s 2012 Lanvin collection he showed Friday was one of his best. He managed to bring a bit of the devil into his beautiful world. The one key element ( other than the dark more sinister styling ) was his new small but important shoulder he quietly slipped in that provided a newer silhouette. It worked beautifully. Shoulder pads can often appear cartoon-like but in this case…. you felt strength and confidence.
What was equally surprising was that the man known for his dresses made a true stab at “sportswear.” He’s more limited in this area but what Alber was able to conjure up worked well to propel this collection forward and give the Lanvin woman something new to look forward to.
photos courtesy : Yannis Vlamos / GoRunway.com
Dries Van Noten – my view
This is what the show looked like from my vantage point. Beautiful from any angle……
Photos: DChen
Dries Van Noten – Couture bent
Dries Van Noten found his inspiration within the architectural shapes of 50’s Italian and Spanish couture. His collaboration with photographer James Reeves for his city night scape prints cleverly pulled the collection back into present day relevance.
It wasn’t one of his more emotional collections, but the beauty and sophistication quotient was more than enough to make up for it. There was definitely a sense of calm that ran through the presentation. The shapes and the prints shared equal billing in importance throughout the collection. Well conceived and finely tuned. Another winner for Mr. Van Noten.
photos courtesy: Yannis Vlamos / GoRunway.com
Milanese beauty – Luisa Beccaria
photo: DChen
No time for runway shows in Milan… just a tornado of showroom appointments packed in two and a half days. A pleasant surprise was at our first stop this morning to via Formentini… at Luisa Beccaria. A beautiful s.s 2012 collection inspired by Mediterranean colors and popular vacations spots. Amongst the treasures, this gorgeous cotton tulle gown in an unusual shade of butter yellow. An unexpected treat.
Jil Sander – Pure
Raf Simons consistently ups the intellectual bar each season at Jil Sander. He continues his exploration of couture and how it fits in today’s world. He ended his show with these four gowns in white. As tradition goes, couture shows often close with the bride. These very pure, beautiful gowns begin with Jil Sander’s love of a beautiful white shirt.
Raf Simons has been at the helm of Jil Sander for 6 years now. Season after season, he continues to respect Jil Sander’s aesthetic. With each collection, we see more and more of him and his new ideas. It’s now Mr. Simons’ very strong vision that carries the brand forward. In Milan, this is the collection I am always the most eager to see each season…. first to see how he embraces the house’s legacy and how he’s built his new ideas around them.
Photos courtesy of: Photo: Yannis Vlamos / GoRunway.com
NYC Fashion WEAK – Thom Browne
No… that’s not a typo in the heading. It’s been mentioned that I only have good things to say when I write. I admit, I do like to say nice things about new ideas and beautiful things. But… sometimes…. it’s just not there…..
What is this man doing to the fashion landscape? I’m all for imagination, conceptualism and a need for extreme expression…BUT… must it make me wince and furrow my brow as well? Thom Browne did revolutionize men’s fashion with his hyper tailored shorter suit jacket and his high water skinny pants. That took a bit to get used to but used to I did get. It became a major influence for men and how they wear their pants years later. But this?…. I refuse to get used to.
In the absence of John Galliano, Mr. Browne is toeing the originality line a little closely. He treaded into Galliano’s territory with his highly theatrical presentation in a beautiful Beaux Arts reading room at the New York Public Library. The models entered what seemed to be a dinner party in a 1920’s salon.
His idea of distorting proportions could have been really interesting, but some of the looks bordered on ridiculous. When even the most mad designers spew idea after idea onto the same look at a fashion show, if you have a good eye, you can apply some visual dissection and pull the look apart….and deep within you’ll find the buried treasure. This boat sunk deep without any traces of treasures to be found, anywhere….
Mr. Browne’s adventures into the women’s fashion is a more recent. His men’s collection presented earlier this summer in Paris caused a prior bout of head scratching for me. His play on proportion is obvious. My guess is that he didn’t finish what he had to say during men’s so it continued into his women’s collection. If HE has to suffer through it, so can SHE. Maybe that’s what was going through the head of Mr. Browne when he created this collection.
photos courtesy : Marcus Tondo / GoRunway.com & Imaxtree
NY Fashion Week – Gregory Parkinson
There’s a lot of noise about unexpected colors for Spring.Summer 2012. The designers who have shown the first few days of NY Fashion Week have definitely blasted that as a trend. Only fitting that GREGORY PARKINSON, the master of mix of fabrics and colors decides to take a quieter road. His nearly all white collection is a breath of fresh air in all this craziness of print and strange color combinations. A pure more serene collection is harder to pull off. Only the gifted can produce a collection that’s almost zen-like that can provide the same wow factor a collection that throws every color and trend at you.
Gregory Parkinson presents one of his best collections to date. The details are what sets each look apart. The shapes are simple but it’s the textures of the fabric he chooses, the quiet embroideries, the layers of organzas, silk voiles and laces mixed with washed cottons and sheer jerseys that give his looks polish and presence. Beautiful calm…. a welcome break.
photos courtesy: Amanda De Simone / GoRunway.com
