So very fitting
Mercedes-BENZ Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios has for years been fraught with hand-wringing and head-scratching about the viability of runway shows in L.A. But this season, all the doubt and worry was cast aside. People are embracing this local event for what it is, and having a blast.
The lobby of the Culver City venue has become part three-ring circus, part platform for good, with designers, celebrities and regular citizens rallying around fashion, yes, but also social consciousness, which is wonderfully fitting for a city as progressive as L.A. Vanesa Corbala from the local band Whispertown2000, dressed in a plush bunny hat, belted out tunes to herald the debut of a repurposed Goodwill clothing line called William Good. Steve-O of “Jackass” fame shed his coat and jumped up and down stark naked to unveil his new PETA ad. And Angela Lindvall chattered about her backyard compost pile at a news conference announcing an EcoStyle event next month in Kuala Lumpur.
There have been celebrities galore, and not just D-list, front-row bottom feeders. Nicky Hilton showed her Chick line on the runway, Beck came out to support his wife’s Whitley Kros label, Adrian Grenier caught one of the “green” shows, and “The Hills” star Lauren Conrad was making the rounds with her TV crew.
And thanks to an effort by event producers to attract more established designers -- even paying for their shows if that’s what it took -- there have been clothes on the runway worth waiting in a valet line to see.
Kevan Hall promoted awareness for Africa, placing an annual guide to charitable giving on every guest’s seat. And rather than hand out lipsticks or scarves, he created $13,000 gift bags that will be auctioned off beginning Monday at www.charityfolks.com, with proceeds going to the African Millennium Foundation.
On the runway, he was influenced by the handmade crafts of the Dinka, Maasai and Zulu tribes. It was his finest collection yet, every detail perfectly measured. Known for his quietly elegant, flatteringly draped eveningwear, Hall surprised us this season with more distinctive designs, an emphasis on bold color and artistic prints. He also amped up daywear, including a raw silk jacket with shell beading that put a feminine spin on safari dressing, especially when paired with a pair of fluid, wool gauze trousers.
A strapless gown in a patchwork of colorful silk taffeta prints, hand painted by Nbele artist Sharon Fauvel, was glorious, and fit perfectly with spring’s artistic mood, as did a pomegranate silk jersey gown, with Maasai beading around the middle. A one-shouldered silk chiffon gown drifted down the runway, shades of green mixing as the model walked. A crushed silk tube dress with a funnel collar was wonderfully textured, a stunning yellow dress in a season of many. But the real show stopper was a silk chiffon gown the color of a Serengeti sunset, with a draped and jeweled collar.
After a seven-year hiatus from the runway, red carpet designer Randolph Duke returned with a collection that was promising but could have used an edit and a lighter touch in places. There was enough for three collections here! It was as if he had all this pent-up creative energy, and it all spilled out onto the runway.
Recently having finished work on his stunning, glass-walled home, which seems to sit midair in the Hollywood Hills, it was natural that Duke was inspired by the dramatic landscape of Southern California. The color palette was a gorgeous mix of aloe, gold, agave, black and stone, and the natural trims -- abalone and freshwater pearls -- lovely. His use of palm fronds was nice in a Greek goddess way, but the placement sometimes odd, with an enormous frond running the length of a floor sweeping skirt for example. Better was an ivory palm print chiffon blouson gown with a plunging neckline.
A black cocktail gown was romantic, the way bits of tulle framed the face, and so was an ivory beaded gown, veiled in floaty chiffon the color of “sunlight” according to the show notes. Duke has always been a master at draping (remember Hilary Swank at the Academy Awards?). One of his most intriguing gowns came in aloe green foiled jersey, draped across one shoulder with a slit up the leg, and a dusting of freshwater pearls. That’s the kind of drama we expect from Duke. Hopefully, we’ll see it again next season.
It was a pleasure to see Gregory Parkinson show on the runway for the first time at Smashbox too but a disappointment that he changed direction so dramatically in his design. He’s been known, at least for the last few years, for his work with amazing textiles, which he dyes, paints, foil prints and fuses, creating handmade-looking coats and dresses that sell at Barneys New York and other prestigious stores. (One local fashionista calls him the Dries Van Noten of L.A.)
But this season, he went spare, layering colorful silk tunics over skirts over long tank dresses, their curved shirttail hems creating bands of red, turquoise, indigo and green. The parachute weights, and circles of ombre dye, were on trend and in tune with L.A.’s relaxed lifestyle. But occasionally, the look veered into arts ‘n’ crafts fair territory.
Sue Wong took the season’s love affair with art literally, mining the works of Matisse, Miro, Calder, Ruscha and others to create her signature tunic, bubble and trapeze dresses in silk charmeuse or silk Shantung prints. She also took a spin through Africa and 1960s mod, and there was plenty of the eye-popping color of the season on floaty, draped goddess gowns -- all of which we have seen her do many times before. The styling was again distracting -- neon bright, clip-on hairpieces, green lipstick and black-and-white stockings. Which may be why my favorite piece was the simplest -- a linen sheath dress with a brass beaded collar. It made you wonder what Wong could do if forced to design a collection that was totally spare.
Then again, the falling earrings and hairpieces . . . it wouldn’t be L.A. Fashion Week without them.
--
