Our Very Favorite Moments From the Spring 2019 Collections

We’ve posted the top collections and we’ve listed the most viewed shows. The Spring 2019 season has been over for a week, which means the jet lag’s just about gone, but definitely not the memories! If you’re fighting off fashion month withdrawal, too, relive some of our favorite moments with us in this digital scrapbook.

Sally Singer, Creative Digital Director

My favorite moment of fashion month occurred on that frigid Sunday in New York when no location was convenient, traffic was impossible, you couldn’t bike because of the intermittent near-Biblical downpours, and everyone was sniffly and sharing cold meds on the front row. The day sucked, basically. But standing in the entrance of Rodarte’s show at an East Village graveyard, having arrived late from Telfar’s spectacular concert/catwalk extravaganza at an east side heliport, and watching as Kate and Laura Mulleavys’ dazzling girls scampered in the rain from the church to the garden, all roses and lace and sparkle, well, everything rotten suddenly felt so right. This was fashion: extreme talent, extreme beauty, extreme risk, and worth every flu-y second. For sheer drama and direction, the double act of Telfar and Rodarte, and that liminal space between them, had no equal this season.

Virginia Smith, Fashion Director

After two weeks in Europe, over 65 shows, numerous presentations, and never-ending resees, my most memorable goosebumps-inducing moment of the season goes back to Pyer Moss in New York. The emotion of that show will be a personal standard for me going forward. Pyer Moss deserves our attention and is just what New York fashion week needs.

Nicole Phelps, Director, Vogue Runway

We all love Rick Owens's uncanny way of tapping the zeitgeist, but this season he truly outdid himself—synthesizing our collective rage (at Trump, at the Kavanaugh hearings, at the patriarchy, you name it) into something ravishingly, disturbingly beautiful. The image of this warrior princess with her "brutalist lace" cape and torch is seared into my memory forever.

Sarah Mower, Chief Critic, Vogue Runway

The expressions of wonder on the faces of dozens of schoolchildren who’d been invited by Richard Quinn to watch his show—to me this was the most beautiful sight of Spring 2019. Richard’s show was magnificent, part of the neo-couture movement sweeping the avant-garde. It had the London Symphony Orchestra live, and incredible Cecil Beaton-moderne projections of stormy clouds going on. But what moved me was his use of his platform to hand on inspiration to kids from all the state schools where he studied art; taking a stand against cuts in UK arts education in a way that brought the issue to banner headlines across the press. We saw very beautiful and dramatic shows all through the fashion weeks; so much to make us think, but this incident stays with me in a profound way. We all want to work in an industry which shows, above all, that it’s positive and constructive and will do its best to take responsibility where it can—well, I do, anyway. Two years on from the wave of political slogan t-shirts on the runway, I’m thrilled when I see a deeper kind of activism taking root. Richard Quinn’s show embodied that, by inspiring these working class kids from his own community to see what’s possible when everyone is given access to creative education.

Chioma Nnadi, Fashion News Director

Somewhere between a fashion show and an art exhibit, the opening for “Smooth Criminal” at Red Hook Labs was the life-affirming high note we all needed to close out New York fashion week. Stylist Ibrahim Kamara, designer Gareth Wrighton, and photographer Kristin-Lee Moolman joined forces for the event, conjuring a wild parade of fashion characters for their gangster movie-inspired fantasy. All the costumes were made in a small atelier in Johannesburg, South Africa, with the most spellbinding looks spun from repurposed materials—woven plastic rice bags, bottles tops, etc. Seeing the intricate pieces on the runway brought the hauntingly beautiful portraits of young Africans on the gallery walls come to life; a true triumph of resourcefulness and romance.

Steff Yotka, Fashion News and Emerging Platforms Editor

The most fun I’ve had at a fashion show—or maybe anywhere—was at the Opening Ceremony performance this season, a full on drag extravaganza curated by Sasha Velour. Every queen delivered earth-shattering acts, but special props to Hungry (pictured) who is Bjork’s makeup artist by day and a mesmerizing performer by night. In addition to being both raucous and joyous, the show was also a poignant celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community, a group not always as accepted or included in the fashion world as you might think.

Laird Borrelli-Persson, Archive Editor

Even a hopeless romantic (like me) knows there’s no way to rose-tint current affairs. Still, beauty persists, and the Gothic turn it took at Ann Demeulemeester—where black roses adorned tailored pieces, many worn over floaty dresses—felt just right. For some added daily protection from the dark side, I’d gladly wreath my neck with Giambattista Valli’s clever necklace, which adds a surreal twist to the talismanic evil eye (mal occhio) pendant.

Monica Kim, Fashion News Editor

I loved seeing the brilliant Kozaburo Akasaka make his fashion week debut—no show or traditional presentation, but a late night concert by Chilean cosmic rock band Föllakzoid, who played a raucous set in Kozaburo’s signature slim cut shirts and bootcut jeans. It brought to life the clothes and his sort of quietly renegade vision in a single, high-impact stroke.

Edward Barsamian, Style Editor

This season was full of so many highlights—Ralph Lauren’s epic 50th anniversary show and dinner in Central Park, included—but the moment that will resonate most with me was going to London to see Victoria Beckham's tenth anniversary presentation. I had never gone for the shows and there was a celebratory mood throughout the weekend culminating with the designer's bash hosted by husband David and British Vogue EIC Edward Enninful. I snapped this pic of Beckham just as she finished greeting her family—I think her expression says it all!

Brooke Bobb, Senior Fashion News Writer

There were two similar moments that really struck me this season in New York. One was the sound bath led by a group of children at the tie-dye-filled Collina Strada show and the other was Rio Uribe’s powerful ode to mother nature at Gypsy Sport, which began with an impassioned speech about self-awareness and having a deep appreciation for everything that surrounds us. Both shows were about mindfulness and how clothing can help us feel grounded during chaos. Right now, as we look to designers for answers regarding how we should dress in the face of political chaos and environmental crisis, these two shows reminded me of the importance of looking inward and embracing our own self-expression as a way of coping with the madness.

Emily Farra, Fashion News Writer

Sending my twin sister to Area was definitely a highlight! Yes, it was a fun Parent Trap experiment, but she’d never been to a fashion show before, and I loved hearing her outsider’s take on it. As for my own experience, I really enjoyed Brock Collection’s show at Le Coucou; the fabrics were beautiful, and seeing the dresses in the context of where you’d actually wear them—or at least dream of wearing them—brought the collection to life, which rarely happens in a standard runway venue. No complaints about the coffee and fresh fruit, either!

Anny Choi, Market Editor

One of my favorite moments this season was attending the Marina Moscone presentation at Willem de Kooning’s former studio and residence. The space was absolutely beautiful, the clothes were everything that I want to wear now, and the hair and makeup went perfectly with the setting. Bravo!

Lynn Yaeger, Contributor

My favorite moment was seeing Vivienne Westwood at the Matty Bovan show in London. It was as if the grande dame of eccentricity and individuality was passing an invisible torch to a very new, very young generation. It cannot have escaped Dame Westwood’s glance that underneath Bovan’s towering headpieces, deep inside his wild extravaganzas, lies a sensibility quite as rigorous and serious as her own.

Jorden Bickham, Contributor

Despite waiting for over an hour for Marc Jacobs’s show to start on the final night of New York fashion week, it was by far my favorite moment of the month. We had been planning our collections video with the Hadid family loosely based on Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice for as long as I can remember. There is nothing like a show that cements everything you are planning creatively, especially the night before a shoot! It was fashion fate.

Luke Leitch, Contributor

The beach, various roofs, various rooms with retractable roofs, gig venues, clubs, in a courtyard around a burning pyre: this was a season in which many designers tried to show collections in a fresher context than the boring old white room. Of all of these perhaps the most directly debated was Emporio Armani's 2,500 seater shindig at Milan's Linate airport. Personally I thought the moaners overdid it a little—a runway show on the runway was most definitely a new idea. That show was spectacular, oh yes. And when we left we had to exit security with all the late-night passengers just landed from Rome and Palermo. For them, we, were the show—and a pretty funny one at that.

Tiziana Cardini, Contributor

This season, Paris was all about shows that polarized opinions (Celine, Thom Browne), or stunned audiences with blockbuster productions (Dior, Balenciaga, Gucci, Vuitton, YSL). Sometimes it seemed that fashion got lost in the entertainment noise; even today’s fundamental issue of giving women respectful yet strong fashion propositions looked at times diluted into formulaic, marketing-oriented renditions. Are a pair of oversized shoulders enough to empower women? Not really. Yet a few designers sent out a more nuanced message, seizing the zeitgeist with integrity and intelligence, addressing the discourse on womanhood and femininity in a powerful, profound way. Ever the artsy contrarian, Comme de Garçons’s Rei Kawakubo staged her collection in an intimate setting, building a small wooden box within the Palais des Beaux-Arts. The message was delivered with quiet serenity, yet it couldn’t have been more emotionally touching. Models slowly parading the space were wearing beautifully designed outfits with protruding bumps printed with delicate rose motifs, or from which dangled clanking metal chains. It was a strong metaphor on pregnancy, maternity, and on how the creative power of women entails an endless struggle to get free not only of patriarchal power but also of internalized limitations.

Amy Verner, Contributor

The first Schiaparelli ready-to-wear collection was a delight to discover, especially as presented in the shocking pink Place Vendome salons. Bertrand Guyon’s treatment of Man Ray’s works was elegant and inspired, not esoteric. Those glass teardrop tees were more couture than kitsch; and I wouldn’t be surprised if the Secret bag—the maison’s first—becomes a sleeper hit. Though fleeting, the concept space bodes well for a future boutique, and I look forward to seeing the clothes worn in the real world, which just happens to feel more surreal than ever.

Janelle Okwodu, Senior Fashion News Writer

For me the most powerful moment of the season was seeing the beautiful model, Mama Cax on the runway at Chromat. A cancer survivor who has been an incredible activist for body positivity, she walked on crutches with a customized prosthesis on her right leg. Naturally, the audience cheered as she made her way down the runway. In a season where many brands have utilized the language of activism and inclusion as a cynical slogan or means of appearing woke that show felt genuine and meaningful.

Liana Satenstein, Vogue Senior Fashion News Writer

I really enjoy the label Barragán by Victor Barragán. He’s originally from Mexico City and now lives in New York. He held his show at the bustling downtown Century 21 among shoppers. It had his signatures, like great denim jeans and jackets, but he used homeware as the accessories. I was obsessed with this hulking gourd-like terra cotta vase that resembled a formation from Mars. Or a really hard neck pillow.

Lauren Valenti, Beauty Writer

Shalom Harlow closing the Versace show with a super-sized cloud of ringlets! As a curly-haired girl in the ‘90s (saturating my hair in John Freida’s Frizz Ease Serum and steamrolling it straight), Harlow gave me a glimmer of hope that I might one day have the confidence to wear my natural coiled mane proudly. With individuality reigning supreme this season, and curls of all shapes and sizes finally being put forth on the runways, Harlow’s long-awaited return struck a pitch-perfect chord.