Three cheers for Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez.

Showing at the tail end of a mixed bag of a New York Fashion Week, the designer duo proved with their Proenza Schouler show that there is still a very good reason to come to the big apple to see the collections.

Just the exceptional research and innovation of fabrics would have made this show a standout. The needle punched oversized sweatshirts, that seamlessly blended leather and knitwear, was expertly done. The squiggle patterned salt and pepper techno lace that had a hint of camouflage netting to its design was wholly unique. And the organic looking lace, which only can be describe as resembling bubble foam, made for some exquisitely sexy evening dresses.  

But it is a real testament to the talents of these designers that they didn’t let all their high tech textile experimentation get the better of them and overpower the show. McCollough and Hernandez ingeniously gave the collection a restricted palette of black and white, with the exception to one portion of the show where ever so pale shades of lavender and mint made it into the mix. Of course this decisive color choice kept the focus on the fabric development but it also helped to concentrate the eye on the cocooning construction of the clothing.

In a clear nod to the work of Cristobal Balenciaga the designers cut this collection with a compass. Crafting rounded sculptural jackets and coats, circle skirts, and tapered pants in voluminous proportions.  If this gave the show a ladylike feel with its bouclé dresses, ostrich skirts, and one gorgeous sheared Toscana coat, well the designers had a perfect counterbalance. They came up with a series of chainmail-esque embroidered garments, which were paired with black and white woven leather pieces, that if you didn’t have detailed show notes to give them away- mimicked tweed to perfection.

This show was tour de force fashion. It was more than just modern (a phrase overused almost as much as the word luxury). It was prophetic. And what McCollough and Hernandez are proselytizing is an exciting new future for fashion.

- Jessica Michault