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The team of Proenza Shouler (comprised of 25 year olds Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCullough) have already won fans like Marisa Tomei, Kristin Davis, and French Vogue's Carine Roitfeld, as well as the coveted Perry Ellis Award for New Talent. This season, they continued on with their by now signature 'corsets' which are highly intricate and worked in a variety of fabrics (often quilted) and paired with everything from tweed pencil skirts to cropped skinny pants that are sportily padded, laced, and tucked into boots.
Though they cited the tremendous influence of Camilla Nickerson in their work, it was not a literal translation of what she set forth. For example, there was very little strong color (other than a touch of red) and there was nothing really decorative in a vintage sense). But that said, the clothes were imbued with a feeling that was based on offbeat mixes and high contrasts in volume, color, and in texture. As they put it, "Extreme luxury is pared down and the everyday is elevated": in other words- 'hi-lo'. And there was a definite change in the air this time around. Whereas last season was much more ladylike and refined, owing to a touch of vintage and Chanel, their women this time is much more hard edged, mean and lean if you will. Even their aggressive silhouettes had many fashion pros recalling the work of 80's icons Thierry Mugler and Claude Montana. Well, okay- so it didn't all work, but many of their wool felt jackets were fantastic with the accompanying emphasis on the shoulder and waistline, and their daringly innovative and modern approach in a season of retro, looked very appealing.
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