Nostalgia for bling? Really? There was Marc Jacobs running with a bold gold necklace clanking over his sweater as he dashed down an improvised runway. It was, in fact, two single lines of chairs leading across the vast, empty back lot of The Lexington Armory.
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The models were exceptionally tidy hip-hoppers, compared to the baggy pants and oversize hoodie tops of their predecessors. Instead they wore well-fitting zipped tops or elegantly cut checkered jackets that seemed to belong more to Seventies punk than the street outfits of 20 years ago.
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Heads were covered in rounded caps while fur trimmings at the collar suggested a well-off bunch. And after the show, as the models lounged in the street by a vehicle blaring out deafening music, they seemed utterly laid back. But maybe that was because they were occupied with devices that no-one envisaged back in the hip hop days. Or should that be “daze?”
A documentary called Hip Hop Evolution had inspired this show, Marc said. He referred to “the poignant and pivotal cultural movement that reshaped and redefined the landscape of music, which gave way to a whole new language of style.”
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That was an introduction to the tidy clothes that he described as “my presentation of the well-studied dressing up of casual sportswear.”
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It is weird to think of Marc himself, who lived through that period of wild music and attitude, looking back with nostalgia to the not so distant past.
The collection had some fine pieces, especially in the tailoring, that looked very marketable. And cranberry suede – or was it velvet? – looked classy as it shot by.
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But given Marc’s track record of fashion daring and controversy, this vision of street style, seen through rose tinted glasses, seemed rather tame.
