(New York) An air of vacation at Michael Kors, shivers of anxiety at Altuzarra, and Tory Burch asserting herself in a spectacular setting: New York Fashion Week expressed its diversity on Monday, on the fourth day of the fashion shows the spring-summer 2024 season.
The American designer gave a holiday feel to his collection, the first since the announcement of the takeover of his parent company Capri (which also oversees Versace and Kimmy Choo) by the Tapestry group (Coach, Kate Spade), to make a luxury giant. Along the East River, facing Manhattan, the podium took on the appearance of a seaside promenade, under the eyes of actresses Blake Lively and Halle Berry. “I can’t take you to Capri, but I can take you to Brooklyn,” smiles the 64-year-old designer, who always seeks to combine glamor and comfort.
Near the water, light outfits, white and all in embroidered lace, short dress, mini-skirt and blouse set, or pants and small top, worn over sandals, combine with the music, jazz and glamorous songs of the pianist legendary Burt Bacharach. A light and loose sweater, in cashmere and cotton, falls just below the belt and leaves the legs completely exposed, a nod to the “no pants” trend, but also a way to adapt to changes in temperature.
“We all know the world has gotten too hot. And we wonder more and more how to dress, especially when it’s too hot outside, and in the office (with air conditioning) it’s too cold and we’re freezing,” explains the designer.
Kors also reinterprets the wicker basket made popular by the recently deceased artist Jane Birkin. “A British woman who lived in France, but had this laid-back attitude, I think it was very American,” he says.
Radically different atmosphere at the Altuzarra parade, inside the venerable Manhattan Central Library, under a high dome with opaque windows.
In recent seasons, Franco-American designer Joseph Altuzarra has been inspired by mythological stories or great journeys. This time he plunged into the distressing atmosphere of Rosemay’s Baby, a classic of fantasy literature from the pen of American novelist Ira Levin (1929-2007) and “timeless masterpiece of Roman Polanski’s horror film” cinema, he explains in a text presenting the collection.
In a dark setting, to disturbing music, the collection gives pride of place to slip dresses, worn under long jackets, or to skirts or sets in delicately crinkled satin, and decorated with pearls. Short tulle overlay dresses are covered with a transparent organza veil, reminiscent of a doll. With this collection, designer Joseph Altuzarra wanted to exude “a haunting and enigmatic vibe, while remaining grounded in everyday style and pragmatism.”
“In a chaotic world, I wanted a little calm. But I didn’t want to do minimalism,” Tory Burch said after her show.
The setting was grandiose, under the roof and between the undulating granite facades of a new atrium of the New York Museum of Natural History, an emblematic institution of the megalopolis backed by Central Park.
In this setting, she has multiplied the experiments: ultra-short skirts are worn under a parka or a collarless blazer in futuristic shiny purple, with tinted glasses.
Among the most original pieces of the collection, there is also a cape and dress set in viscose knit which ends in rounded reliefs.
The fabrics are light, but they create structure, like her other dresses, cut diagonally above the knees and leaving one shoulder uncovered.
The American designer also wanted to reappropriate symbols of constraint for women, such as the corset, and integrate them into “beautiful femininity”.