Proenza Schouler
NEW YORK, February 11, 2004
By
No more Mr. Nice Guys: For their Bryant Park debut, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez forsook the sweet all-American girl who had inspired their spring show in favor of a woman straight out of a Helmut Newton portrait: intense, sexy, strong. They dressed her in pants that were seamed, lashed, and tied, and sent her stalking down the runway to a dense, bass-heavy soundtrack in ferocious back-laced boots.The opening look featured a wool felt trench with shoulders that Claude Montana could love. It was the first of several coats and jackets that emphasized the shoulders (broad) and waist (small) and were worn layered, in what has already become signature Proenza Schouler style, over intricate bustiers in metallics and muted jewel tones. Feathers, fur, lamé, and sparkle upped the luxury quotient, which reached its apex in a mink sequin coat cinched with a jeweled belt. McCollough and Hernandez played deftly with proportion, especially in jackets like the double-faced cashmere bolero with oversized pockets, and ended with a series of seductive dresses, seamed and fitted to cling to every curve, in which no woman could fail to claim the night.
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