A glance at New York's fashion future: Anniversaries, comebacks, and debutantes for FW24
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New York Fashion Week was once the shining centre of a new guard of fashion, far removed from the heritage and prestige of Milan and Paris or the experimental creativity of London. It has somewhat fallen out of favour and fashion in recent years. Over time, New York seemed a little too commercial in taste, a little too safe and yet, at often times not commercially viable for the brands whose collections were, above all, meant to sell. While the latter continues to be an ongoing struggle with support, both monetary and otherwise, not being readily available, the fall/winter 2024 season has proven that there is more than enough young talent worthy of it. All while contrasting with some of the city's biggest success stories.
Anniversaries and New York Originals
While Marc Jacobs, who was Design Student of the Year at Parsons in 1984 and now celebrated his label's 40th anniversary, was not officially on New York Fashion Week’s schedule, his show and his enduring relevance underlined the true potential of New York’s creativity. The collection itself was driven by the idea of the mundane. Seemingly common and simple garments and shapes reminiscent of 60’s housewives were, as is often the case with Jacobs, exaggerated and yet impeccably tailored. Models walked under a large-scale sculpture of American artist Robert Therrien’s 2006 work ‘No Title (folding table and chairs, beige)’, imbuing the line with a child-like wonder, that aptly being the name of the collection. Maybe it was because Jacobs, akin to most of the industry, is aware of just how rare a continuous success story like his truly is, that he celebrated this milestone with vigour and more poignantly – and more publicly – than any before.
Jacobs, however, was not the only designer in New York with plenty to celebrate. Once ‘the new kid on the block’ Joseph Altuzarra presented his 15th anniversary collection within the confines of his headquarters, choosing to only invite those who have truly supported him in the course of his career, according to Vogue Runways global director Nicole Phelps. The salon style show and the collection itself felt deeply personal, not just for the designer, but also for the customers that flock to the brand. Inspired by riding apparel and the style of Princess Diana as well as portraits of the art deco artist Tamara de Lempicka, the collection was shrouded with a sense of nostalgia but without sacrificing modernity or the modern woman in its course.
One brand that has been in business five years longer than Altuzarra is Tory Burch. The designer opened the doors to her first store 20 years ago and has since been a fixture on the New York schedule. Recently, however, the brand has had a sort of renaissance, at least according to the Lyst Index, where it was crowned as a breakout brand a few months ago. After being nominated for Womenswear Designer of the Year by Council of Fashion Designers of America [CFDA] the brand and its pierced mules have executed a successful transformation from commercial to cult, according to the British search engine. With plenty to celebrate, the anniversary show exuded joyfulness, as models confidently walked the runway to the tunes of The Cure and Joy Division. They showcased a vibrant array of shiny frocks alongside subdued office attire ingeniously transformed into work-appropriate hoodies.
Two New York prodigies that had no anniversaries to show for and yet plenty to celebrate this season were Proenza Schouler and Khaite. While the former, headed by boy wonders Jack McCullough and Lazaro Hernandez since 2002, has been an assured favourite among the city's it-girls from the start, Catherine Holstein’s brand Khaite has risen to cult status in a mere few years. Since the brand was founded in 2016, Holstein has been twice named designer of the year by the CFDA in 2022 and 2023, and has built a devoted following. Both brands in their own right, dress quintessential ‘cool girls’ based in the big city but while Holstein seems to have leant in to the trending ‘Mob-Wife’ aesthetic for this season – Shearling coats, gold chains, oxblood colours and lots of leather – the designer-duo at Proenza Schouler was set on clean lines, sharp tailoring and sheerness and layered staples.
Tommy and Thom return to the city, Ludovic De Saint Sernin makes a pit stop
Aptly titled ‘New York Moment’ Tommy Hilfiger, who has not shown since September 2022, returned to New York City this season and brought prep, nostalgia and a starry front row with him. As a designer who is synonymous with American fashion, he paid tribute to what show notes referred to as “a lifetime of memories” in the city. The show, held at Oyster Bar at Grand Central Terminal, brought classic American cool to the runway and honed in on Hilfiger trademarks such as rugby shirts with pleated skirts, baseball caps paired with shirts and ties, varsity jackets, hoodies, tweed separates and a lot of red, blue and white colours that the brand describes as “Tommy’s Americana come to life”.
Hilfiger's return to New York was not the only notable comeback. Despite being chairman of the CFDA and therefore spearheading American fashion, Thom Browne had forgone the spring/summer 2024 presentations in September after debuting his Haute Couture collection in Paris. Upon his return to the city, Browne, ever the master showman of American fashion, closed the FW24 season with an Edgar Allan Poe-inspired collection that masterfully combined apparel of commercial appeal with endless storytelling. The collection's theme was infused with an air of mystery and without forgetting about the garments themselves. From a striking black headpiece resembling a raven to coats adorned with black birds, the designs were inventive and theatrical but at its core, wearable. Thom Browne showcased an array of coats, jackets, skirts, and trousers, some fully formed while others boasted a deconstructed aesthetic.
One designer that slightly and surprisingly made his NYFW debut was Ludovic de Saint Sernin. The Paris-based designer has been a fixture on the Paris Fashion Week calendar since he founded his brand in 2017, yet for this season he touched down in New York. In parts, this was due to a collaboration with the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, founded by the photographer before his death in 1989, as well as to quench the thirst of his customer base in the US that, according to WWD makes up 32 percent of the brand’s overall sales. The runway presentation traversed a narrative arc from youthful innocence to sensual maturity. Mapplethorpe's blossoms, hand-cut in velvet, adorned sheer tops, slip dresses, and skirts, juxtaposed with De Saint Sernin's glam metal mesh designs incorporating pixelated crystals. Transitioning from sultry leather coats to bondage-inspired attire, the collection delved into darker sexual fantasies, maintaining a luxurious aesthetic throughout.
The ‘new guard’ redefining fashion in New York
De Saint Sernin is by no means the only young and exciting designer to choose New York as stage this season. Others, like Willy Chavarria, Collina Strada or Eckahaus Latta consider the bustling metropolis their home and have long made themselves heard among the big commercial names on the CFDA’s official schedule.
Much like Tommy Hilfiger once upon a time, Willy Chavarria has taken American Ivy prep and redefined it. However, while Hilfiger's prep at its core remains in the world of privilege, Chavarria has taken the inspiration and turned Americana into something much more inclusive. Dubbed ‘Safe From Harm’, the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year's FW24 collection told a story about collectively keeping each other secure, a story he told with the help of tailoring and familiar fabrics such as tweed, herringbone, and glen plaids.
Fabrics and texture played a considerable role in Eckhaus Latta’s FW collection as well. The designer duo Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta played with unique knits and non-traditional fabrics, as is typical for the brand, however this season their mood seemed to have shifted from playful to serious. The collection opened with a rendition of Lana Del Rey’s ‘hope is a dangerous thing for a girl like me to have – but I have it’, setting the tone for a slightly more subdued but in no way less accomplished collection. The brand that has been in business for 13 years now presented a collection that featured clean lines and cubist patterns, emphasising wearable wardrobe staples rather than focusing on seductive allure alone. Sheer mesh shirting, maxi dresses with satin fringes, and chest-bearing 'vests' that were reminiscent of ropes evoked the brand's talent for slicing its path in an industry where the balance between commerce and creative output seems an afterthought at times.
Creativity still reigns supreme at Luar, though this season a surprise appearance from singer Beyoncé almost outshone even the most creative of designers. Luckily, Luar’s Raul Lopez unveiled a collection that easily held its own, all while declaring the comeback of ‘the metrosexual’. Defined by the Oxford Dictionary as “a man who is usually heterosexual and is very interested in fashion, grooming, and his appearance in a way that is usually seen as being like a woman” the term and the phenomenon behind it is, or at least under Luar’s FW24 collection, rooted in the 90s. The reference was interesting given Luar's consistent gender-fluid ethos. The brand’s signature oversized boulder shoulders adorned tailored pieces, outerwear, and dresses, complemented by distinctive warped design elements. Notable moments include a dusty maroon-covered suit paired with a toffee-hued balaclava overlay and light-wash printed denim merged with a ribbed white knit top, as well as an oversized yet structured navy leather suit with fur arm detailing, juxtaposed with an ivory silk button-down and tie that summarised the collections' interplay between masculinity and femininity.
