Phillip D. Johnson believes Zang Toi’s fall–winter 2004–5 collection is his best yet, with his inspiration clear and restrained. One of two standing ovations Lucire witnessed seem testament to the fact

PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY THE HOUSE OF TOI
SOME BACKSTAGE PHOTOGRAPHY BY THE AUTHOR

HREE WORDS best describe Zang Toi’s fall 2004 collection as presented at the newly renamed Olympus New York Fashion Week: elegantly understated glamour—but with a decidedly modern twist. Mr Toi, who’s equally as comfortable on an airplane travelling the world showcasing his various collections to royalty and valued customers alike as is he at home at his studio–showroom in New York City, drew the inspiration for his collection from the stylish iconic beauty of famous (and infamous) Parisienne women such as: legendary film actresses Catherine Deneuve and Jeanne Moreau; the late, great, American expatriate Josephine Baker; the late esteemed social lioness, the Baroness Marie-Hélène de Rothschild; Victoire de Castellane (the Artistic Director of Fine Jewellery at LVMH’s House of Dior); and a modern-day beauty-in-training, the young, acclaimed actress, Audrey Tatou; as well as the grandiose decorative art of Louis XV at Versailles.
   These women, past and present, are known for their fierce individualism, which has allowed their beauty, inside and out, to shine all the more throughout the years. It is no wonder then that Mr Toi was inspired to design one of his most fully cohesive and conceptualized collections in recent years.
   Right off the bat, one of the knocks against Mr Toi has been that, in the past, he has too liberally interpreted the inspirations for his various collections to the point where it has worked against him. There may be some truth to that in the past but the same cannot be said about this collection. The qualities that made these women style icons for the ages are fully represented in the designs that came down the runway at Bryant Park, but only the lightest possible essence. He held it together and produced one of his most restrained collections. From beginning to end, it was a presentation that lifted the spirits and, in its own way, rescued the New York fall shows from a deepening sea of morass that threatened to sink the whole enterprise.
   He opened the show with a model wearing a mini-tiger-stripe fur coat with a black ribbon stash, touching on one of the more prevalent themes of the week: fur coats with leopard spots and animal stripes patterns in various lengths, including the accompanying full length gloves and hats. This look was youthful and modern, thus demonstrating that he, too, was in the business of extending his brand beyond his natural customer base.

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RIGHT: Images from the Zang Toi fall 2004 collection, front of house and backstage. BOTTOM FAR RIGHT: Farrah Fawcett backstage.