Yesterday, fashion’s reigning king of kitsch Jeremy Scott heated up a snowy New York Fashion Week with a cowgirl-themed show starring top models Karlie Kloss, Soo Joo Park, Anna Cleveland and Taylor Hill. In front of a truly packed house, he rolled out all of the colour, cartoon graphics and Barbie-esque wares that we have come to expect from one of fashion’s most celebrated eccentrics.
There were the crop top and mini skirt combos and the cartoon-covered frocks and sweaters – psychotic Chihuahua and his feline sidekick Ren & Stimpy were Scott’s reference of choice for AW16. This season, a retro theme ran throughout the collection, resulting in 1950s era-silhouetted skirts – poodle skirts as they have come to be known – and big hair. All of the models sported big hair, which gave off a slight Barbie vibe, thereby connecting Scott’s work at his own brand to that of Moschino for which he created a collection inspired by the doll for SS15.
Putting the cowgirl in the show’s “Cowboys and Poodles” title were fringe-adorned leather trousers, playful overall dresses, quite a bit of denim-on-denim, and cow skin-printed garments. Also not to be missed: the standout coats. There was the big pink and purple tinsel coat that model Soo Joo wore down the runway, and also the faux fur coat done in wavy stripes of salmon and red hues (along with a cropped version for the guys).
There was also the turquoise metallic trousers and mini skirts, the latter of which was paired with a big neon pink belt and a Hollywood pin up t-shirt. “There’s a punky kind of Debbie Harry take on this kind of cowboy and Western vibe that I’ve done, and dripped it into candy colours,” Scott said after the show. That explains the “Hanging by the Telephone” soundtrack, and the telephone printed garments that closed the show.
“There’s a punky kind of Debbie Harry take on this kind of cowboy and Western vibe that I’ve done, and dripped it into candy colours,” – Jeremy Scott
Because this is Jeremy Scott, we already know that his sweaters and accessories will be the first to go. This means that the cowboy-inspired booties will make for next season’s street style photo fodder, as will the Hollywood pin-up tote bags, and the stuffed puppy dog purse that Anna Cleveland carried down the runway.
So, while it seems the rest of the industry is taxed with solving the runway-to-retail scheduling problems, Scott is having fun and selling clothes – and that’s a thought worth pondering.
