New York Fashion Week: Jason Wu and Thom Browne reimagine wardrobe staples


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The fashion set is almost ready to depart the Big Apple for London, with New York Fashion Week drawing to a close on Sunday.

However, before boarding passes are printed and bags packed, a number of the city's designers showcased their visions for spring/summer 2022.

Saturday welcomed another strong showing, with collections that overflowed with a sense of youth and fun.

Here are the runway highlights from day four.

Rodarte

Seemingly eager for life to have returned to near-normal by next summer, the design duo focused on looks meant to be seen out and about. Think bias-cut dresses with power shoulders or trimmed with lace, and dresses completely decked in strands of beading.

One section of Rodarte's show centred around the same high-necked dress recut with different sleeve shapes, from bell to split to caped, reminding the front row why this inventive name continues to be embraced by the style set.

Thom Browne

In case we needed a refresher of Browne’s skill at cutting and tailoring, this collection was so filled with technical mastery, it felt more haute couture than ready-to-wear.

The designer took apart suits and recut them into an impressive range of looks for both and women in this co-ed show. Strong tailoring arrived as dresses with bolero jackets, stretched into jacket dresses and with crisp capes, while silhouettes were column straight, both with and without build-up shoulders.

A softer feel arrived in the shape of goddess-inspired dresses, but ones that were carefully constructed from layers of tulle to create folds.

Jonathan Simkhai

Showing in New York on the formidable date of 9/11, Simkhai took this as a cue to look resolutely forward. His response was a collection that was simple, elegant and rather lovely.

Taking his staple slip dress, this was reinterpreted into many different looks, featuring everything from dramatic cut-out shapes around the midriff to knitted fringing that hung from the knees.

At one point, it was even caught around the torso to create a ruched finish.

Jason Wu

Another name to embrace bold colour, Wu delivered an array of dresses and gowns that were covered in blooms. Some flowers were literal while others relied on a technique of wrapping real flowers in cloth and letting the petals stain the fabric.

Faded, messy and beautifully original, Wu used this theme to glorious effect on fancy gowns and city shorts.

Coming soon

Torno Subito by Massimo Bottura

When the W Dubai – The Palm hotel opens at the end of this year, one of the highlights will be Massimo Bottura’s new restaurant, Torno Subito, which promises “to take guests on a journey back to 1960s Italy”. It is the three Michelinstarred chef’s first venture in Dubai and should be every bit as ambitious as you would expect from the man whose restaurant in Italy, Osteria Francescana, was crowned number one in this year’s list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

Akira Back Dubai

Another exciting opening at the W Dubai – The Palm hotel is South Korean chef Akira Back’s new restaurant, which will continue to showcase some of the finest Asian food in the world. Back, whose Seoul restaurant, Dosa, won a Michelin star last year, describes his menu as,  “an innovative Japanese cuisine prepared with a Korean accent”.

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal

The highly experimental chef, whose dishes are as much about spectacle as taste, opens his first restaurant in Dubai next year. Housed at The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal will feature contemporary twists on recipes that date back to the 1300s, including goats’ milk cheesecake. Always remember with a Blumenthal dish: nothing is quite as it seems. 

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Updated: September 12, 2021, 12:32 PM`