Have you noticed that the pages of this month’s Vogue are thicker? Or that your social media feed has turned into a runway? That’s right, it’s fashion month.
Every September, fashion’s top designers debut their new spring/summer collections at fashion weeks in New York, London, Milan and Paris. The month is full of daring new designs, high-fashion street style looks and a sneak peek at the future of fashion.
New York Fashion Week kicked off fashion month Sept. 10-15, giving fashion editors, buyers, celebrities and the world a first look at what the month has in store.
NYFW began in 1943, when fashion publicist Eleanor Lambert organized the first “Press Week” in America. During World War II, Americans were unable to travel to Paris for fashion shows, and Lambert saw this as an opportunity to give American designers a spotlight and establish New York as a fashion capital.
She invited fashion journalists to the Plaza Hotel to view collections from American fashion designers, putting New York Fashion Week on the map.
Since then, the week has evolved alongside fashion, from rising hemlines to an increasingly packed schedule of runway shows. But somewhere along the way, the runway began to lose some of its magic.
In recent years, runway walks have been less dramatic, and collections have started to feel too similar to the next and overly commercial. They have lost their experimentation, putting focus on minimalism, neutrals and sales rather than creating art.
Runway walks with attitude, maximalist designs and personal style were part of what made the ‘90s and 2000s runway collections so iconic. Fashion felt more expressive and artistic, with designers striving to carve out a space for themselves and make an impact rather than repeat safe trends or simply sell clothes.
Alexander McQueen’s spring 1999 show was pure performance art. Model Shalom Harlow closed the show in a white dress as two robots spray-painted her in black and green, transforming the look before the audience’s eyes. It was a runway moment that pushed boundaries and proved that fashion truly is art.
McQueen wasn’t the only designer bringing personality and drama to the ‘90s runways. The Vivienne Westwood Fall 1993 collection showcased fur, exaggerated styling, bold colors and prints, creating a whole world of its own. The looks embraced that individuality and storytelling that many runways seem to lack today.
Despite being held at NYFW’s birthplace, the Plaza Hotel, this year’s spring/summer Tommy Hilfiger show felt uninventive and stuck in the past. The collection heavily leaned on Hilfiger’s familiar preppy aesthetic and color palette, with looks that were not only similar to years past but similar to one another as they walked down the runway.
Calvin Klein followed a similar theme, with looks that felt seen before. Stripping down to extreme basics and leaning on a heavily neutral palette, the collection felt unimpressive.
Minimalism and a neutral color scheme rely on inventive design and silent drama to impress. This collection had the minimalism and neutral palette without the design to make up for it.
So have designers lost their edge?
Not quite. Carolina Herrera’s spring/summer 2027 collection suggests otherwise. The looks showcased ruffles, bold patterns and a variety of colors and styles while still remaining cohesive.
Tapping into ‘60s nostalgia with mod dresses, polka dots and oversized sunglasses, Carolina Herrera proved that nostalgia prefers referencing vintage style, not last season.
Ralph Lauren also designed to impress with a collection full of texture, fur, colorful shimmering fabrics and silhouettes that glided down the runway, each different from the last. With hints of 2000s inspiration from boyfriend jeans and sparkles to 3D floral accents, the collection created looks that felt red carpet-worthy rather than blending into everyday streetwear.
While Ralph Lauren and Carolina Herrera proved there is still hope for NYFW, too many designers are falling into the neutral minimalism of today’s fashion that doesn’t dare to take risks. Fashion doesn’t need to be loud or “out there.” It just needs to give us something that we haven’t seen before.
New York Fashion Week should stop us in our tracks, push boundaries and remind us that fashion isn’t just clothes — it’s an art form.
