New York fashion week finds optimism in modernist art
Calvin Klein, Michael Kors and Tory Burch turned to modernist references as fashion sought discipline, remembrance and escape.
New York fashion week took a highbrow turn as Calvin Klein, Michael Kors and Tory Burch drew on modernist art to shape collections concerned with optimism, remembrance and escape, according to The Guardian.
At Calvin Klein, designer Veronica Leoni continued the minimalist direction she has pursued since taking charge two years ago, moving the label away from jeans, underwear and prominent logos. Georgia O’Keeffe served as the season’s muse, with a checked pattern inspired by the artist’s utilitarian wardrobe appearing on a wrap coat. The reference also carried a brand history: Calvin Klein bought O’Keeffe’s Summer Days in 1983 and later donated it to the Whitney Museum.
Michael Kors presented his collection in the courtyard of the Museum of Modern Art, citing Alexander Calder, Henri Matisse, Carmen Herrera and Ellsworth Kelly. Calder-inspired disc earrings, Matisse-like cut-out shapes, Herrera’s black-and-white geometry and a banana-yellow accent associated with Kelly brought the references into an otherwise restrained palette of tobacco, black and moss green.
Kors described modernism as bold and optimistic, while also framing the presentation as a remembrance held on the 25th anniversary of 9/11. He said the show paid tribute to New York’s resilience, following a more glamorous collection staged at Lincoln Center.
Tory Burch set a colourful, midcentury-influenced collection against the unsettling soundtrack from The Shining, describing the current moment as dystopian. Lavender silk, golden feathers, jewel-toned skirts and embellished cardigans offered a deliberate counterpoint: an argument for joy, dreaming and escape.
