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At Carolina Herrera, An Artful Reset

The designer's show hit on something good this season, with a rarefied setting at MoMA's sculpture garden that enhanced the fashion rather than overshadowing it.
Carolina Herrera Spring/Summer 2018 | Source: Indigital
By
  • Lauren Sherman

NEW YORK, United States — Each season, reporting on the collections becomes less about what's on the runway and more about what's off the runway: the food, the venue, the atmosphere, the experience. Fashion shows are no longer about fashion, they're about brandstanding.

The real delight, then, happens when the clothes are as good as the surroundings. Carolina Herrera delivered that rare combination on Monday evening, under the moonlight in the Museum of Modern Art's sculpture garden, which is currently populated with the likes of Dan Graham's mirrored glass "Child's Play" and Alexander Calder's sheet-steel "Black Widow". It was the first runway show ever to be staged there, and hopefully it won't be the last.

However, it was Herrera's collection, with its pop-art inspired hues and sharp graphics, that made it worth MoMA's while. The designer's studio has been through several creative changes over the past few years but has finally hit its stride as evidenced in the palette choices and fresh silhouettes, which stood up nicely to the sheer gravitas of the space. A terrazzo-tile print was stamped onto white silk faille and pink chiffon, puffed sleeves were hiked up high and yellow polka dots were blown up on a pink asymmetrical gown, while a black tulle number was sprinkled with rainbow confetti. Cornflower blue ribbons framed a few dresses; marbled buttons decorated others. The designer said the collection was all about colour, but it wouldn't have been so impactful without its one black-and-white cocktail dress, which was embroidered with dots of geometric sequins. It almost looked computer-generated, but it was live-action fashion enhanced, not overshadowed, by its set.

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