Fashion Shows: A Love Story

I have been wanting to write a post about my love of fashion shows for quite some time now but I continued to self-debate about whether I would really be able to do write about it in such a way that would do it justice. I have decided that now is as good a time as ever to just go for it with gusto! After all, my dear friends, isn’t the purpose of a runway show to give the fashion media, retail buyers, fashionistas, celebrities and a long list of others an opportunity to form their own opinion about what I have always thought of as art work brought to life. It is so pleasurable to be able to spin a fantasy in my mind about each look that comes down the runway. Note: The above and below looks are from Vivienne Tam's Spring 2015 Ready to Wear collection.

 

Fashion shows are so vital, to me, because they are the period or exclamation point, depending on how one feels about a collection, at the end of a fashion designer’s dream come to life. It gives me great pleasure to witness the dream of a designer; particularly, because the manifestation of the dream is so brief. Note: The looks below are from Marissa Webb's Spring 2015 Ready to Wear collection.

 

 

 

 

 

A designer spends months designing a collection for which the presentation process is so fleeting. Throughout this post, I will share with you looks from some of my favorite Spring Ready to Wear 2015 collections because there is something quite admirable about an art that predicts what one will be wearing two seasons from now is there not? Note: The looks below are from Donna Karan's Spring 2015 Ready to Wear collection.

 

 

 

 

I often used to wonder what a designer was thinking of at the time they created a collection.  Now, not so much. The veil has really been lifted for many years now with the advent of so many fashion documentaries. If you had the opportunity to see any of the fashion documentaries released over the past several years such as Valentino: The Last Emperor or Gucci: The Director I am sure you understand to what I am referring. In addition, many fashion publications now let us in on what inspired a designer to create a collection. It has me wondering whether I preferred when the inspiration behind a collection was a mystery. Has so much transparency had an effect on my perception of a fashion show? I enjoy, after all, forming my own perception of what may have inspired a designer. Note: The beautiful looks below are from Joseph Altuzarra's Spring 2015 Ready to Wear collection.

 

 

 

 

I often compare it to listening to songs I love. I used to think the song Every Breath I Take by the retro rock band The Police on their Synchronicity album was a love song until music artist Sting revealed that the song was really about obsession. This revelation caused my love of the song to initially disintegrate, just a little. How could I feel the same about a song that was really about obsession which has more in common with the concept of stalking than romantic love? I learned to just get over it. How, you ask?

I get such a sense of pleasure from seeing the first model at each show strut the catwalk when I see a runway collection in person or via a live feed on my laptop. Why let the story behind the art interfere with my own interpretation of it? The answer for me is to just let it go and relish in the pleasure I receive from seeing art come to life. I have learned from reading publications that feature interviews with designers and from viewing fashion documentaries that one universal thread reigns true: designers just want their art to be seen. They want to know their creations are relevant. Note: The Spring 2015 Ready to Wear looks below are from 3.1 Phillip Lim.

 

 

 

 

We all play an important part in celebrating the art of designers by showing up during fashion weeks and by wearing the fashions that they have bequeathed as the latest and greatest in the apparel world. It does not matter if my perception of a collection is different than what drove the designer to create a collection as long as I continue to appreciate the sweat and tears and countless hours the designer put forth in making their collection come to life. Isn’t that really the end-game?  Note: The Spring 2015 Ready to Wear looks below are from Derek Lam's collection.

 

Why do you love fashion shows, my friends?

 

Thanks so much for reading my post, supporting me and for your comments.

I wish you a happy week but before I go I leave you with my favorite verse from Every Breath You Take:

 

Since you've gone I've been lost without a trace
I dream at night, I can only see your face
I look around but it's you I can't replace
I feel so cold and I long for your embrace
I keep crying, "Baby, baby, please"

 

So long, until next time, my friends.

*All images in this post are credited to Style.com.