Alexander Wang

Alexander Wang's latest collection is being hailed as his most grown-up and developed by a laundry list of critics and editors. I don't imagine having Gisele close his show hurt. It was certainly more controlled, leaving the Downtown, Model Off Duty aesthetic in the dust. That is integral to his image though that I wonder if Wang fans may be disappointed. I personally love that he typically errs towards that aesthetic, but it's often shrugged off by biggies within the industry as if it's immature.



The emphasis of the collection was on outerwear with pieces mostly in black and white with some deep burgundy mixed in. In a video interview with style.com, Wang spoke about his interest in Surrealism and fabric manipulation.



Tweeds were laminated, leather was shrink-wrapped, all so the textures provide for a skewed perception. Perhaps it was a comment on luxury? The shine of the clothes was a paramount point of interest, though runway photos do the textures little justice. The aforementioned style.com video provides a much better look.



The extreme coverage of the clothes—heightened by the mesh turtlenecks over most of the models' faces—might serve as a perfect armor for dealing with charity canvassers and people dying to tell you about Jesus Christ, your Lord and Savior. Unsurprisingly, the glazed black leather motorcycle jacket inspired pieces particularly caught my eye, as well as the boxy gun-case inspired bags. The latter again seems to challenge his typical aesthetic, as the bags have a vintage feel that I've never known Wang to explore. The white men's shirt-inspired fringe dress is another favorite that has not completely abandoned the party girl spirit. I can't say I would put this among my favorite Wang shows, partially because it seemed a bit too focused. But come next season, I may change my mind. We all have to grow up sometime—or at least that's what they say. Photos via style.com