SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2017 Marc Jacobs rewrites runway rules with hip hop finale arc Jacobs offered a hip-hop grand finale to New York fashion week on MThursday, rewriting runway etiquette in a phone-centric, celebrity-obsessed world with the future of traditional catwalk shows under threat. One of America’s most critically acclaimed living designers sent models down a bare wooden catwalk in silence, striding through the middle of a cavernous room devoid of decoration and empty but for a long line of seated spectators. Fashion from the latest Marc Jacobs collec- tion is modeled during Fashion Week, in New York. Runway Models pose on the runway after the Marc Jacobs collection during New York Fashion Week in New York City. unsubtle. Jacobs called his collection a “repre- “This feels like a time to rethink not only favor of a video that will coincide with the start sentation of the well-studied dressing up of what we say but how we say it,” Jacobs told of Paris fashion week. “Probably we will, but casual sportswear” and hip hop the foundation Women’s Wear Daily, suggesting that people maybe in a very different format,” she told of youth, street culture. immerse themselves in the live experience of a Women’s Wear Daily when asked whether she fashion show much like going to the theater. “It would return to the schedule in spring. “The cal- Time to rethink does feel that, in this moment, people pay much endar is so full now that it’s insane to try to get Jacobs’ virtuosic skill, which channeled hip more attention to who one’s showing on than models and hair and makeup. It’s a battle royale hop into instantly recognizable upmarket attire, what one’s showing. You know, whether it’s the for everybody.”—AFP was mesmerizing, his palette camel, ginger, Kendalls or the Gigis,” he said of celebrity mod- brown and gold-with hints of red and maroon. els Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid. Belted coats fell mid-thigh and were paired with That said, Jenner walked the runway, as did short skirts and dresses. There were baggy track- models Winnie Harlow, who has vitiligo, Casil style pants that trailed even chunky platforms. McArthur, who transitioned from being a Standouts included pumped up hats that woman to a man, and Hanne Gaby Odiele who evoked hip-hop style, heavy gold jewelry and a recently revealed she is intersex. New York saw handbag worn round the neck on another an increasing number of designers question the chunky chain. relevancy of the runway-especially considering the cost of wildly expensive catwalk displays-as the industry moves towards a more see-now, buy-now model, and designers have more Kendall Jenner models an outfit from the options to communicate. For the first time in his Marc Jacobs collection during Fashion 15-year career, Zac Posen instead did an exhibi- Week, in New York. tion of photographs showing just five models wearing a capsule collection. In a break with the usual flash-mob frenzy straining to capture every move on cell phones, Dialogue guests were kindly asked to refrain from taking “I love the theatrics of the runway but I think pictures. The layout gave an audience of around right now it’s a different time, for me at least,” he 300 each-in two back-to-back shows a front-row told AFP. “I like that you can stand in front of an seat on utilitarian fold-out chairs. With no music, image and have a conversation about what the only sound was the thud of models prowling we’re seeing. At a runway show, there’s no talk. the scuffed wooden floor. Only when they exit- Fashion and beauty is about dialogue,” he ed the building onto Park Avenue could press added. Sophie Theallet, who made headlines for photographers record the action as models took refusing to dress First Lady Melania Trump to their own seats, ready to turn phones onto the protest against her husband’s politics, posted guests as they poured outside. her collection online in a series of photographs. The music-so ubiquitous at fashion shows- She did private presentations for select press Singer Katy Perry takes pictures of models blared out of loudspeakers as guests and mod- and retailers, but told AFP she wanted to con- on the runway for the Marc Jacobs collec- els found themselves in a mobile phone face-off centrate on making clothes rather than the tion during New York Fashion Week in on a bitterly cold February afternoon. Guest of logistics of a show. New York City. — AFP/AP photos honor Katy Perry, the most popular person on “I like to think there is shift right now,” she Twitter with 96 million followers, snapped away said. “Independent brands can now communi- with other lesser mortals-the commentary on Fashion designer Marc Jacobs, right, walks cate their vision directly to their customers,” she celebrity-obsession as deliberate as it was the runway after showing his collection added. Vera Wang also ditched the catwalk in during Fashion Week in New York..