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The Asian influence that has permeated her designs
since the inception of her design house in 1981 is still very much
there, except it’s relegated to the beautiful stretch gabardine
caftans, coats and shift-like dresses. For true evening dressing,
the standout design here was a halter top black shantung gown (lined
with green shantung) with an asymmetrical hemline.
Michael Kors
BAR NONE, my all-time favourite collection
from Michael Kors was his spring–summer 2000 ‘Palm Bitch’ collection.
With its shrunken knits, killer bikinis and Lilly Pulitzer-style
prints, he made a very strong case for turning ’70s sportswear and
understated movie star glamour into the height of ’90s casual hipness
and modern sophistication.
Although he himself would not presume to go there,
it has been said that he is the preeminent heir to the late Claire
McCardell (1905–58), the acknowledged creator of the ‘American Look’
born in the mid-1940s. They both share an affinity for clean lines,
a detailed sense of proportion and sureness in the handling of luxurious
fabrics that was, is and continue to serve as the foundation for
much of current design. (Of course, the very next season, he veered
dangerously off course with his unintentionally freeze-dried fall–winter
2000 follow-up collection, ‘10021’, a collection that, to put it
nicely, died on the vine. Happily for us, he survived the débâcle
and lived to fight another day.)
His spring 2004 collection, a take-off on the
lifestyle of the rich and aimless on the Italian isle of Capri,
was like a breath of invigorating fresh air from Mr Kors, whose
back-story includes recent collections for both his namesake line
and for the LVMH-owned design house
Céline that seriously missed the mark, a business divorce
from LVMH and his fait accompli
resignation as the creative director of Céline.
In his highly imaginative journey to Capri, Mr
Kors referenced several well-known cultural touchstones. For his
menswear designs, the main frame of reference here seems to be The
Talented Mr Ripley, the late Patricia Highsmith’s tale of murderous
deception and identity theft. Many of the male models (at least
the Caucasian ones) had that Jude Law–Dickie Greenleaf aura of male
casual elegance. In this era of the metrosexual, Mr Kors’s designs
are the perfect pieces to add to your wardrobe if you are planning
to clean up your act in all the others style areas of your life.
With so much to choose from, where do I start?
How about his superbly comfortable walking shorts in sunflower yellow,
sky blue, burnt orange, tan, and white cotton? They are just as
enticing as the corresponding trousers that came down the runway,
often paired with open neck shirts and fitted lightweight jackets.
The various safari-style jackets caught my attention (so very Out
of Africa), although their built-in style limitation demand
that one step back and give it further thought before making a purchase.
After all, how many chances will you get to wear them and not look
too out of place in the big city? He referenced the American west
with his crisp white duster overcoat, worn over an equally crisp
pant with discreet cargo-pocketing detailing. I also liked his sloped
shoulder oatmeal, shawl-collar cardigan sweater, a piece that goes
well with everything. For evening, he sent the always fabulous
Ryan Locke out in a smooth, debonair white (lightweight) tuxedo
suit.
CONTINUED
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ABOVE: Michael
Kors.
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