Marc Jacobs' Fall/Winter 2009 Collection at New York Fashion Week

New York Fashion Week has an overall different vibe this year due to the economic times, the changes being especially pronounced at the Marc Jacobs catwalk show — and for the better. Jacobs, notorious for staging over-the-top catwalk shows and after parties, both with mile-long lists of celebrities, hosted a much more clothes-focused, business-like presentation this year.

For starters, the guest list was cut down to just 500 people — all fashion buyers and press — down from the usual 1,500 attendee-event. As a result, Jacobs was able to have the space arranged such that everyone had a front row seat — which, in a world where one’s row number is a status symbol, allowed the attention to be centered on the designer’s new collection instead of who might be sitting two rows in front of you. Meenal Mistry of Style.com’s Style File blog noted after realizing her first-row seating, “I’m so excited to finally see the shoes.”

Furthermore, this year’s invitations were clearly marked “no plus-ones,” meaning that invitees were not allowed to bring a guest. There was however, one major exception to this rule: Anna Wintour. Marc Jacobs International president Robert Duffy explains, “Anna gets to bring a guest because she got us our jobs. Anyone else who wants to get us a job, they can have a plus-one, too.”

What’s more, the show actually started a full two minutes early. This may not seem like a feat for many, but, in the past, Marc Jacobs has kept people waiting for up to two hours.

The collection’s presentation, which was held at the State Armory, was apparently stunning. In the words of Hilary Alexander, there were “Metallic brocade puffball-minis; Day-Glo capes with American footballer shoulders; flannel jodhpurs worn with satin bustiers; little coats in pastel chenille with oversized ‘pixie’ hoods; black bondage-trousers, kilted at the back, with grey cashmere cardigans, piped in silver – all flashed by in a kaleidoscopic whirl of colour, print, texture and silhouette.

“Party-frocks came in fluorescent pink and lime satin, ruched like Austrian blinds or finished with squared-off, raw-edge hems. Others, in a mix of satin and velvet, featured bodices and skirts folded into the shape of a lily. There were paisley smocks and an umbrella-dress, suspended from a red-sequined bodice. Bold ponchos, edged in black, were worn with nun-like black head scarves.

“The accessories were just as eclectic: Over-the-knee boots with Turkish, turn-up toes; round-toed, patent shoes with velvet bows or silver balls for heels; oversized, square-frame goggles; gold and shiny pink gauntlet gloves; and squashy clutch bags in a patchwork of lamé, or featuring a squiggly foliage print which matched the flashy tights.

“Jacobs described the collection as ‘bringing Downtown to Uptown’, a reflection on his younger years in the 1980s when New York’s street fashion scene was very dressed-up; punk and Glam Rock-influenced and, in many ways, edgier than the romantic-historic dress code prevailing in London’s club scene.”

Sources: Style.com
- NY Mag
- Telegraph.co.uk
- LA Times: Marc Jacobs Fall/Winter 2009 Photo Gallery
- Fashionologie

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