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Her beachwear designs are equally as daring
and fun. Standouts here include a teal ruched slim-cut, high-waisted
one-piece bathing suit and a fun shark motif boy-cut bikini set.
Known for her love of theatrics and her traditional cartwheel down
the runway after the finalé, Ms Johnson solved the eternal
fashion week issue of front-row dramatics by installing small cabaret
club-style round tables along both sides of the runway (for her
VVIP guests with champagne included
to get everyone in the right frame of mind for the show). She then
had a second set of traditional “front row” VIP
seats to satisfy the snobby, do-you-know-who-I-am crowd who think
that their seating assignment is a public affirmation of their worth
or value to the industry. The models, as usual, were the some of
the most animated girls that came down any runway that week, no
doubt energized by the good vibrations that usually follow Ms Johnson
wherever she goes. And although she named her show ‘Guys Love BJ’,
she certainly isn’t telling us something we didn’t know already.
Miguel Adrover
MIGUEL ADROVER is the modern-day Pauline
from the 1914 episodic silent film series, The Perils of Pauline.
(Pauline, played by actress Pearl White, week after week, evaded
attempts on her life by fighting Indians, gypsies, rats, sharks,
her guardian and her most familiar plight, being tied to railroad
tracks with a rapidly approaching train.) He has had more exhilarating
highs and soul-searching lows than any man or woman in fashion.
His life is one big dramatic roller-coaster.
Instinctively talented, he rose from the depth
of poverty in the mid-1990s to dazzle the fashion cognoscenti.
Then he mistakenly sold his company to the LVMH-wannabe
Pegasus, who mismanaged the brand and finally went out of business.
But, much like the Phoenix rising from the ashes, Mr Adrover came
back stronger than ever with a spring 2004 collection that reminded
us why we loved him in the first place and so missed him when he
wasn't around.
His collection reminded us that his message hasn't
changed that much: models in tribal garments with vertical stripes
on their legs, the Islamic layered chadors that caused him so much
grief just after 9-11, an amusing shout-out to his show sponsor
(UPS) and other musings on the human
mosaic that has long been the foundation of this country. But sprinkled
in between them were some of the most beautifully tailored designs
seen all week. Stand-outs here include the wonderful series of men's
suits worn by greying models, the simply stunning A-line skirts
and tops (very much in the repressed librarian vein), gorgeous gowns
that barely skimped the body, shirt dresses that are so very ’50s
but still very modern. The overcoats and jackets he sent down the
runway were to die for. He really raised the bar this time. Mr Adrover
restored my faith in the belief that there are still those designers
out there that truly have their fingers on the pulse of the market-place.
CONTINUED
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ANTI-CLOCKWISE FROM
TOP LEFT: Betsey Johnson (first three images). (Photographed
by Cheryl Gorski.) REMAINING PHOTOGRAPHS:
Mark Montano. (Photographed by Richard Spiegel.)
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