New York occupies a special place in the recent history of fashion. Contemporary ideas of glamour and luxury were partly shaped there: in the consumerist worlds of Sex and the City and The Devil Wears Prada, sexy Calvin Klein campaigns and Helmut Lang’s avant-garde vision. Today, we’re looking back at the excess of the Noughties fashion with increased interest, and it’s not limited to the catwalk. Ottessa Moshfegh acclaimed novel My Year of Rest and Relaxation, released last summer, is set in pre-9/11 New York, where the heroine chooses days of chemically-infused sleep over the dazzling yet cynical art world and a closet of branded clothes she is completely indifferent to. Reflecting on the Naughties is intriguing precisely for the memories it evokes of a world where capitalism seemed to work — the moment which shaped our uncertain reality of the gig economy, digitally-infused anxiety and an impending global political crisis.
For the last couple of seasons, Calvin Klein by Raf Simons was a highlight of NYFW. Simons had an outstanding ability to sum up the very NYC American dream and American horror story like only someone from the outside of the US could, and there is certainly a gap in the story with his recent departure. Thankfully, a new wave of American designers is here to give their take on what fashion and luxury mean in NYC today and tomorrow.
At AW19, the classic NYC glamour continued to echo on the runways. Tom Ford served the high-end take on the nostalgic Noughties fantasy: leather tailoring, figure-hugging black gowns, silk blouses, velvet and faux fur hats. Meanwhile, Proenza Schouler’s take on luxury was more subversive: showcased in an unfinished office space in Hudson Yards skyscraper, it was subtle and simultaneously refined and rough around the edges. Deconstructed tailored pieces in grey and navy, fine knitwear and flowing pleats made for an immaculate contemporary post-old-Celine wardrobe.
Maryam Nassir Zadeh AW19. Photo: Mitchel Sams.
Maryam Nassir Zadeh’s AW19 collection represented how a cutting-edge, trend-led wardrobe has changed in recent years. The garments resembled vintage-inspired pieces, thrown together, and mismatched, the fit — deliberately — ever so slightly off. Clashing animal prints, fluorescent tie-dye, a fringed and beaded sweatshirt tucked into a pencil skirt — those combinations seemed to highlight NYC’s eclectic spirit (especially showcased among ornate mirrors and Persian rugs which hinted the designer’s Iranian heritage).
Eckhaus Latta’s show was certainly among the most anticipated at NYFW, just the way it’s been for the last few years. Having set up their label in 2012, Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta are still at the forefront of the new American fashion avant-garde. The duo’s work has always been about the garment and the way it feels and moves on the body — but also about their creative community. Eckhaus Latta shows and films have featured an extended family of collaborators, emphasising the role of empathy and diversity in contemporary fashion. For AW19, these notions were still there, just as the brand’s staples, only in a more refined and polished form. A collaboration with UGG on shoes and shearling jackets was an added bonus, which made a few headlines.
The increasingly political question of American identity also loomed large at some of the brightest NYFW shows. Telfar undoubtedly delivered the most powerful statement. Enlisting playwright Jeremy O. Harris, his runway performance “Country” fused classic cowboy visual tropes with crowd-surfing and talk about the queer black experience in the broader context of community, inclusivity and national heritage.
Chromat AW19. Photo: Noam Galai/Getty Images.
The debut of LA-based label No Sesso was another uncompromising statement. Pierre Davis, the designer behind the agender brand launched in 2015, was the first trans-woman designer to show on the official calendar during NYFW. Running the label together with Arin Hayes, Davis regards representing the experiences of her community as the main goal. Similarly to Art School in London, No Sesso eliminates the gender boundaries in fashion through pieces which are simultaneously intricate, fluid and fiercely cut. No Sesso, however, comes from a more politically-changed and marginalised space of contemporary LA, where fearless expression and bold energy shake up the status quo.
Political messages don’t often come in the form of fluorescent elastic, but this was the case with Chromat. Based between Miami and New York, Chromat is often described as a swimwear brand, but its designer Becca McCharen-Tran sums it up as “future forward bodywear”. This season, Chromat remained faithful to inclusivity and diversity they’ve been championing for seasons: bodies of all shades, shapes, sized and abilities. The models’ hairstyles were adorned with plastic bottle caps, and they carried palm fronds and other bits of lush Miami vegetation alongside bottles and fragments of plastic waste. Soundtracked by a selection of female-centered reggaeton tunes by Riobamba, the presentation was a comment on climate change, which in Miami disproportionately affects immigrant communities.
In the end, this season of NYFW proved the nostalgic appeal of NYC luxury and high-end glamour is powerful, but the designers who make the most impact today think in much broader political terms. There is a bigger world out there beyond New York, and in this world the main luxury today is having a future, and making a space in this future for your community.