Should one always read the signs or what
one imagines are the signs at a Marc Jacobs show? A dreamlike suspension
of white clouds scudding high above the audience’s heads, drawing the
eye up, a depiction of skyward freedom? The sound track that consisted
of a lush yet melancholic orchestral passage playing as Jessica Lange
intoned the words to “Happy Days Are Here Again.”
Discover Marc Jacobs' F/W '14/15 runway show at the end of this post! LoL, Andrea
From a bombed-out beach to somewhere over the rainbow in less than six
months. Since his last turn for LOUIS VUITTON on theNew York runway in September, Marc Jacobs
has left his post as creative director of Louis Vuitton, a job he held
for a decade and a half (discover my post
'A Moody Spring by LOUIS VUITTON' S/S '14 campaign and collection). He's a full-time
Manhattanite again, with a
possible future IPO in his sights.
The clothes echoed that mood.
"It's all a pose," Jacobs said when we
told him so backstage.
"What do you do after you've trimmed everything
with every bead, sequin, bow, and black bit of tassel? You come up with
something that comes from a very powerful place, but in a fresh and soft
way rather than an aggressive way." This wasn't minimalism, though. It
began with reduced shapes in restrained fabrics: a scoop-neck tank dress
in double-face wool paired with matching pants, a clingy mélange knit
V-neck accompanied by ribbed leggings that pooled over the tops of comfy
sneakers. Like loungewear for some next-level spa or health clinic a
feeling that was heightened by the models' fabric headbands and matching
razor-cut bobs. As the show progressed,
Marc Jacobs slowly added
demonstrative pieces in more lavish materials, crescendoing with
hand-painted organza ruffles on a strapless dress and dense crystal
beading on a swirl-print tunic and flares with a lean, 1960s look. His
shearlings, dyed in sunset hues, will go down as best-in-show in a week
that offered plenty of choices. The chain-strap bags looked luxuriously
efficient.
A color palette of bone and ivory and
beige and nude, a scheme of whispering neutrals that indicated a
cleansing-like reset on everything.
The
Courrèges-ish vibe that look gave off gradually
got stronger as the show progressed, to scoop-necked tunics atop banded
flared pants, before plunging full on into the season’s growing
preoccupation with cozy sweater dressing; from Marc, that meant the
likes of oatmeal ribbed tanks worn with leggings that puddled over
sneakers, and very Sonia-Rykiel-in-the-seventies long-line sweaters with
matching skinny scarves and slim skirts. Gradually, washes of stronger
hues, like lilac, apricot, and aquamarine started to seep through,
appearing on voluminous cropped bomber jackets, before sparkling as lean
metallic dresses, or as an ombré on a series of heavenly tiered
dresses. The overall effect was similar in mood, if not look, to the
costumes in Spike Jonze’s brilliant
Her;
a sense of the past and the familiar unsettlingly recalibrated for the
future. But that’s only my impression. As with all that Marc does, just
stay in the moment and enjoy where his journey takes you right this
second.
Selections by ANDREA JANKE Finest Accessories
Photo Credit/Source: VOGUE
Photography by Kevin Tachman & Gianni Pucci / Indigitalimages
A
Moody Spring – Marking Marc Jacobs’ final campaign for Louis Vuitton,
the spring 2014 season features six of his muses including Sofia Coppola, Catherine
Deneuve, Caroline de
Maigret, Fan Binging, Gisele Bündchen and Edie Campbell (Coppola, Deneuve and de Maigret images are
the first to be released). Photos by Steven Meisel.
&
The moment pre show and during the show
are the most frenetic. Models gracefully glide along the catwalk but
backstage they rush to change into their next look. Here a look at
those backstage moments during the Fall/Winter 2014/15 fashion show.
