Alexander Wang does ghetto fabulous at New York Fashion Week
Chinese American designer was among the first to merge sportswear and luxury, but his style needs to evolve now names like Hood by Air and KTZ have worked the fashion hoodie
At New York Fashion Week this season three designers are celebrating 10 years in the business - Riccardo Tisci at Givenchy, Phillip Lim and Alexander Wang.
Of the three, Wang appears to have evolved the least as a designer despite his commercial success (which has landed him coveted roles including his recently ended contract with fashion house Balenciaga).
His 10th anniversary show and party was quite the spectacle, complete with pole dancers, celebrities like Nicki Minaj and a giant screen which played snippets from his shows over the years. These proved to be more exciting than the actual collection, which can best be described as ghetto fabulous. Sporty street essentials were made luxe, as seen in the cropped leather tops matched with frayed denim maxi skirts and shorts, eel skin bombers, mesh tops, oversized hoodies and leather fringing.
We have to give Wang some credit – he was one of the first designers to merge sportswear and luxury all those years ago, but back then he had little competition. Today names like Hood by Air and KTZ are bringing a fresh new energy to the category, which means that Wang needs to show more than just hoodies to stand above the rest.
