Fashion Scoop: No-Show Narciso
Add Narciso Rodriguez to the list of designers changing things up for spring 2018.
When the New York Fashion Week Calendar is released on Friday, Rodriguez will not be in his long-held position at 8 p.m. on Tuesday night. He has decided to forego a formal show and instead present his collection in one-on-one showroom appointments on the first official day of the calendar, Sept. 6.
The designer’s prior slot conflicts directly with Ralph Lauren’s plan to present his collection in Bedford, N.Y., in the garage that houses his antique car collection. However, a source close to Rodriguez said there was “no drama” involved in Rodriguez’s decision. In fact, he had long been considering a schedule shift from Tuesday night, while examining the pros and cons of a formal show. Conversations with key retail accounts revealed decreasing enthusiasm for nighttime shows, and strengthened Rodriguez’s own belief that his clothes benefit from up-close viewing of the sort allowed for within the intimacy of the showroom. Rodriguez has been on a creative roll of late, with a series of strong collections in which he has infused his minimalist aesthetic with artful strokes.
With this move, Rodriguez joins a number of designers experimenting with different ways of showing this season. In addition to Lauren, these include Rodarte’s Kate Mulleavy and Laura Mulleavy, Proenza Schouler’s Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, and Monique Lhuillier, who showed in Paris during couture; Thom Browne, Joseph Altuzarra and Lacoste, all of which will show there during the traditional ready-to-wear week, and Tommy Hilfiger, who’s heading to London. More changes may be revealed when the Council of Fashion Designers of America releases the first iteration of its calendar on Friday.
Rodriguez was not available for comment. He and his husband Thomas Tolan are on a brief vacation, focusing on a project of a different sort entirely: six-week-old twins Ivy and Callum. Congratulations, Dads!
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