In the Hall des Lumières exhibition space, housed in the old Emigrant Industrial Savings Bank building (an early example of a New York Beaux-Arts style building), designers Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough presented a collection that they said it was a personal mix of them. stories – in their words, “the sensual and sultry qualities of Lazaro’s Latin roots along with the pragmatism and essence of Jack’s American experience.” Water, the pair said, was chosen as a symbol of life.
The collection, which featured significantly more skin-baring or see-through looks than the designers usually present, opened with two dresses with sheer, crocheted skirts and fringed bodices. A shimmering gold crocheted ensemble with a sleeveless top and sheer skirt was later seen.
Hernandez said backstage that the pair had found “this amazing community of hand weavers in Bolivia,” who worked on a set of pieces for six months.
In conceiving the show, McCollough said the pair had started with a range of silhouettes. The idea of water, he said, was expressed in the sensation of dripping—for example, the rippling sensation of a pair of loose bell-bottom pants or a bare black leather skirt. Apart from crocheted looks, lace dresses added another clean look.
The designers, who met as students at Parsons School of Design, named their fashion label after the daughters’ names of both their mothers. They often base their collections on themes of contemporary art or culture.
