5 Beekman Street, now a beautiful abandoned shell, was the first high-rise building in New York. Proenza Schouler embraced the history of breaking through to new heights, staging a show here that seemed to elevate fashion itself. The focus was on texture, specifically softness. Silhouettes were rounded instead of jagged, and the only colour was black, white and shades of shadow. "We've just been in a coasting sort of serene mood," Jack McCollough said backstage, and with their recent store opening on Madison Avenue and more on the way, it's not hard to understand why the Proenza boys are feeling comfortable.
But translating that softness into clothes that make you feel serene and sure is about so much more than pinning some cashmere on a mannequin. The designers spent two months developing the thermal bonded lace that closed the show – the ultrasonic welding they used is the opposite of traditional handwoven lace technique, which made the gauzy angelic effect of the fabric even more fascinating. Tiny chains formed a film over other pieces, a look McCollough said they intended to feel like a gloss. The collection as a whole is a glossy soft snowbank fit for gorgeous slumber. Perhaps in the Proenza idea of comfort, we can feel as content as if we were asleep, while going about life in an always-wakeful world. McCollough described the collection as "snowy" just as, unbeknownst to him, light flakes were beginning to fall outside. Proenza Schouler is always what's next.
www.proenzaschouler.com
Hair: Paul Hanlon
Makeup: Diane Kendal
Models pictured: Sasha Pivovarova (@pivovarovasasha), Fei Fei Sun (@FeiFeiSunSun), Iris van Berne (@irisvberne), Tilda Lindstam(@tildalindstam), Vanessa Axente (@VanessaAxente), Sam Rollinson (@samrollinson)
