Marc Jacobs’ Spring 2016: A Love Letter to the New York Woman

Ten years on from its shimmering “one night only” debut, Marc Jacobs’ Spring 2016 Ready-to-Wear collection remains spunky, striking, and culturally resonant. In his collection notes, Jacobs frames fashion as a “visual language” and positions New York City as the pinnacle of America. Here, he harnesses NYC’s visual stimuli, asking not only “What is America?” but “Who is the American Woman?” — more pointedly, “Who is the New York City Woman?” Through contrast and collision, Jacobs presents the It-girl New Yorker as timeless, ineffable, multifaceted, and never invisible.

The show unfolded in New York’s beloved Ziegfeld Theatre — a venue which, like Jacobs’ archive, stands as a monument to spectacle and visual art. Luxury shoes crunched over fresh popcorn as the nostalgic rumble of a live big band boomed between gilded walls. Clearly, the theatre prepared for spectacle. Less a fashion show and more a theatrical premiere, the event evoked Broadway glamour, old Hollywood polish, and the sweaty pulse of the city’s underground party scene. The audience? Eager spectators, waiting to witness the many variations of the undeniably cool New York woman.

Jacobs melted together sheer eye candy and layered cultural references: circus-like stripes followed punky plaid two-pieces; military-style coats dripping in brooches like medals glinted under the stage lights, and grungy denim ensembles slouched nonchalantly on the models, - who moved just as cooly - nodding to classic Americana. Nothing felt static. Coats swung open, revealing flashes of satin, pleats bounced and snapped with every step and knitwear swayed heavily down the stage with the recognisable weight of a high end staple.

The diversity is unified by a controlled colour story of saturated primaries in shades of cobalt, crimson, and taxi cab yellow, blending into soft pastels of blush, mint and powder blue and declarative splashes of molten metallic silvers and bronze. The palette was intentional, narrating the passage of time in a NYC day - the blaring, saturated nights that into fresh mornings.

Print stood out, reminiscent of Warhol’s celebration of iconic women ( to New York as bread is to butter). A tailored two-piece emblazoned with Maria Callas’ face becomes a living ode to spectatorship, celebrity, and performed femininity. Her image, frozen as a still on a structured garment, moves stiffly down the runway under gleaming lights. Jacobs’ enmeshes the divergent concepts of movement and stillness, spectatorship and authentic being. Celebrity becomes fabric and fabric becomes celebrity.The look encapsulates Jacobs’ timeless New York woman: visible, iconic, yet elusive. We know her face. We don’t really know her.

The “star” is just one of several archetypes. Jacobs channels versions of twentieth-century womanhood. One is the ’20s flapper in a slouchy drop-waist gown, another, the collegiate ace strolling down the runway in wholesome varsity wear, and of course, the ’80s prom queen strutting confidently in an asymmetrical number. That’s not to mention the corporate ball-breaker in sweeping wide-legged trousers and a blade sharp blazer, and the polarising rebel in distressed knits or pleather hot pants. Some silhouettes are modest and others risqué. They’re all playing with some deliberate contradiction. This is not confusion, its curation. Together, they assert the plurality of the NYC woman. She can be any type of woman she desires. She can be one archetype, she can be all, or she can be none at all.

Accessories, hair, and makeup were the cherry on top of Jacobs’ NYC layer cake:

Glossy pumps and colour-blocked platforms sit beside Chuck Taylor-esque sneakers and metallic lace-up boots reminiscent of vintage majorette styles. Practical yet expressive, the footwear tells us that these women are just as prepared to run errands in Manhattan as they are for New York fashion week. The city demands that she’s ready for both. And evidently, she is.

Hair and makeup sealed the deal. Boyish crops and tousled locs pair with heavy lower lashes, stamped blue lids, and cheeks flushed from dancing at an exclusive loft party. New York is the city that never sleeps, and this collection hums with that sleepless energy. None of the models appeared fresh and ready. They were unrested and disheveled in the chicest way possible.

Then, everyone’s jaw dropped when rockstar Beth Ditto (Jacobs’ long time muse) closed the show wearing a plush white embellished gown with feathers trailing beside her. Slicing through the soft glamour of the gown was a choppy bleached crop, and an attitude that screamed I’m exactly who I think I am. Her expressive, cheeky approach to the runway crystalised Jacobs’ take on the NYC woman, crystallising that you can’t define me ethos at the heart of the collection.

If New York City is America, then America wears Marc Jacobs SS2016.

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