Caroline Herrera, a usual contender for outfitting her collections with all the bells and whistles of lofty luxury, stripped her latest collection back majorly in New York this season. Highlighting her most effective design principles however, the time-honoured design force took ladylike whimsy to an edgy extreme that remained safe, in sugary, candy-coated shades of transparent mesh and sprinklings of feathery prints throughout.
Shapes were effortless, ousting the dramatic sleeves, statement shoulder lines and mighty mink fur trims that have been popular at the house in recent seasons. This evident shift towards street-aware modernity, whilst perhaps alienating more persistent patrons of days gone by, will no doubt peak the interest of younger audiences, but when a designer like Herrera redirects her designs to such disparate consumer, it’s almost too obvious to take seriously.
Nevertheless, SS16 represented an assortment of very pleasing pieces that are no doubt constructed for complete aesthetic success. The heart though, doesn’t always seem to be present nowadays and that’s more obvious in this collection than ever before. In future, it might be nicer to see Herrera’s codes being not just honoured but honed more accurately, and jazzed up a little more while they’re at it. Being refined doesn’t always mean garments have to be drained of all life after all.
by Liam Feltham
Images courtesy of ImaxTree.com