Ralph Lauren’s Designer Nephew Was Inspired By Noah’s Ark For Spring
Greg Lauren at his Spring 2016 show. Photo: Getty Images
Kaia Gerber may be getting a ton of attention this week for being Cindy Crawford’s mini-me (seriously, have you seen her?), but there’s another act in town that’s following in his famous family’s footsteps: Greg Lauren.
The designer, nephew of Ralph, showed his Spring 2016 collection on Wednesday, and like his uncle’s shows, it was a star-studded affair: Amar’e Stoudemaire, Lauren and David Lauren (natch), Tyson Beckford and, the highlight for everyone, Greg’s actress-wife, Elizabeth Berkley, who had their baby on her arm. Also, much like Ralph’s collections, this one was on the lengthier side. “Greg Lauren breaking some kinda NYFW record right now with a 63 look show.” One editor tweeted pre-show.
A look from Greg Lauren Spring-Summer 2016. Photo: Getty Images
If you’re expecting a RL redux, or even some Rugby inspired duds, you wouldn’t be far off. Though Greg, whose shown since Spring 2011 and moved from art into fashion, veers to the boho-nomadic guy rather than the cool prepster. L.A. surf bros? These are your clothes. This season was all linen ponchos and rumpled jackets, cargo and military inspired jackets. Think clothes you can sleep in and roll out to the beach the next day. (In most cases it looked like the men were coming out of the coal mines, their faces covered in faux-dirt.) “This was about a Noah’s Ark of men,” Lauren explained. “And I don’t mean to sound so grand with that, but I really it to feel like a men’s story, an army of archetypes.” Which means, something for every guy, as long as he likes natural fabrics that are disheveled and really distressed.
Maje moments in the show? The accessories. The bags, worn doubled up by some models, were handmade. “We made most of the shoes and we’re introducing shoes to the collection now.” Just like another famous Lauren, but we won’t say it. Okay, we will.
A look from Greg Lauren Spring-Summer 2016. Photo: Getty Images
The show itself was a parade of teams, with models coming out in groupings. Lauren told us he loved that menswear was finally getting its own week in New York, and working on a guy-only collection “was really exciting because it wasn’t an afterthought and it wasn’t something I was putting into the show just because I didn’t have a men’s show. It’s symbolic on two fronts. It’s a celebration of men and a celebration of the creativity in menswear today which the CFDA gave us a chance to shine.”
Any chance of pairing up with the other Lauren some time soon? Don’t get your hopes up. “My work is my work and so I do it very privately and I try not to mix work and family,” he said. So the fashion super show we’re imagining of the Laurens with the Gerbers (or the Hadids or the Jenners!) walking may never happen, but we can dare to dream.
Related: 10 Takeaways From Michael Kors’s Menswear Presentation
