Streetwear with a lot of attitude
If there was one through line for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week’s disparate streetwear offerings it would be upper-case Attitude -- from Christian Audigier’s in-your-face logo wear to Grey Ant’s textural tie-dye pattern tunics. And it makes sense, in a city full of roadways and people who’ve picked up and winged their way west, that the imports made some of the strongest impressions under the tents here.
Love it or hate it, the foundry’s worth of Audigier foil prints and ego-driven “CA” logos made it clear: the French expat loves his adopted home country. His collection, called Le Vie en Rose, was inspired by the U.S. liberation of France in 1944 but also managed to tap into the over-the-top trappings of late ‘70s and early ‘80s streetwear.
The men’s pieces riffed on the military motif that was prevalent at the European men’s shows earlier this year, with camouflage cargo cutoffs, olive-drab neckties and jaunty sailor caps and jackets marching down the runway. T-shirts included trompe l’oeil neck chains, gang signs, tattoo-inspired designs and gold foil boxing gloves. The most memorable look? A male model clad in only a pair of sneakers and a red, white and blue leather hooded poncho emblazoned with a crystal-studded marijuana leaf .
The women’s wear skewed trashy, with allover logo print gold and silver stretch leggings (oddly paired with garter belts), belted mini-dresses, tulle ballerina skirts, animal-print hoodies and an overdose of berets that made one saucy trio look like a battalion of intern-era Lewinskys.
In his return to the tents, Grant Krajecki may have exercised his signature restraint on the color spectrum, but his L.A.-based Grey Ant label had attitude to spare in a thoroughly enjoyable collection, which featured Katharine Hepburn-style high-waisted pants and jeans (now a trademark silhouette for Krajecki), tie-dye sunburst prints on boxy tops and tunic dresses, bubble-shaped pants, rompers straight out of a Culture Club video and a cool reworked classic Oxford shirt with an oversized neckline and exaggerated baggy fit.
His models were also memorable -- in addition to the usual pipe-cleaner waifs he included a striking older woman with flowing gray hair (who earned applause from the audience), a plus-sized diva with crimson lips and a long-haired Jesus look-alike who strutted down the catwalk in a complicated chest harness composed of interlocking circles. The accessories -- black chicken-claw necklaces and high-heeled Tevas -- added to the sideshow vibe. It was good to see one of L.A.’s most gifted designers back in the fold.
At Heatherette, design duo Richie Rich and Traver Rains staged a show that was actually more attitude than clothes - opening with porntrepreneur Jenna Jameson in a multicolored appliqued mini-dress and ankle-length platform boots. The collection was chock-full of Route 66 Americana, with red, white and blue star-spangled spandex pants that looked plucked from the NASCAR stands. Other nods to the American road included gingham checks and a fabric that looked like a picnic blanket with ants crawling all over it. True to Heatherette form, poofy party dresses and skirts were the victim of random trimmings and appliques.
Whitley Kros designers Sophia Coloma and Marissa Ribisi turned out a breezy debut collection of basic women’s pieces -- skinny jeans, blousy shift-dresses, tank tops and T-shirts -- crackling with electric shades of pink, yellow and blue. Some pieces felt like straight-up ‘80s Jazzercise gear, and others had the whimsy of grade-school art projects -- pastel unicorns on T-shirts and bubble alphabet letters printed across rolled-up skinny white jeans. Other pieces included a wearable but unremarkable blazing-pink, loose-fitting mini-dress and an oversize horizontal-stripe sweater. The solid silk separates were bold in shape and hue, and would do for day or night, basic enough to accessorize well.
As one might expect, being the wife of Beck (and twin sister of Giovanni Ribisi) meant Marissa Ribisi drew a galaxy of stars into her orbit, including the singer; Juliette Lewis; Jason Lee, hugging his tow-headed son, Pilot Inspektor, to his lap; Giovanni Ribisi, looking sharp in a skinny-cut black suit, tie and all; and Kirstie Alley, all whooping from the sidelines. It was a full-on, home team cheering section.
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Melissa Magsaysay and Emili Vesilind contributed to this report.
