February 16, 2023 |
Earlier this year, Thom Browne began his role as chairman of the CFDA, returning to New York Fashion Week last night with a collection largely based on The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. The story – which follows a boy living on an asteroid who stumbles upon a lost pilot who has crashed in a desert – inspired Browne to envision quite the set, as a cluster of planets (ironically, looking a bit like spy balloons) hung high above a giant plane plonked in a lake of sand.
The clothes were equally as grand. Browne, whose brand is built on strict, shrunken tailoring, lets fantasy flourish when it comes to his catwalk spectacles. Here, brocade tweed overcoats, in Browne’s signature red, white and blue colourway, came with hulking shoulders. Some models looked like the Nutcracker, if only he was descended from outer space, sporting sculpted plaid pencil skirts and crop tops, with paisley jacquard bodycon frocks worn beneath.
The story’s various characters, including an angel, snake, fox and elephant, were brought to life via chiffon tweed frocks, sequin jackets and grey, pinstripe suiting which was chopped up and pieced together in bonkers-yet-brilliant concoctions – like Savile Row on an acid trip. It was totally otherworldly in its excellence.
Photography courtesy of Thom Browne.
