Carolina Herrera’s AW22 collection is all about flamboyance.
Wes Gordon’s show notes cited as his inspiration “the full-of-fire Carolina Herrera woman.” Surely, this collection drew on the aura of overt flamboyance nurtured so beautifully by the house founder, who sat, elegant as ever, in the front row. Yet it has been Gordon’s mandate to broaden that aesthetic to a younger demographic – women like Alisha Boe, Ariana DeBose, Alexandra Daddario and Faouzia, who all joined Mrs. Herrera in prime seating.
They settled in for a collection in which Gordon delivered the fire with mostly firm control, interrupted by occasional full-on flights of fancy. To display loyalty, he quickly showed two takes on a house signature, the hallowed white shirt: a big-sleeved beauty over skinny black pants and a trim, classic version paired to a fuchsia ball skirt. Those looks established a key element: judicious use of volume. Gordon invoked it deftly if not discreetly, sometimes as the main event, as in a demonstrative frothy ball gown, but more often as a pronounced detail on an otherwise silhouette – a billowing sleeve on a lean suit or giant pouf on a sleek cocktail dress. Where he didn’t hold back an iota: with color, which came in vibrant marigold looks as well as euphoric combinations, particularly multiple shades of reds, pinks and purples.
Either way, these are clothes for women loved getting dressed. They’re ready to shed the shackles of COVID hell and get decked out and out of the house. Read: nothing casual here. For that matter, there were few day clothes at all, though one can argue for the versatility of little tweed lovelies done up with elaborate jeweled trim. Other looks weren’t versatile at all. For big events only (perhaps, for example, one major soiree upcoming on March 27th in Los Angeles), the ballgown in a montage of giant black, white and gold flowers – a dream.
