Kanye West debuted his highly anticipated womenswear collection on Oct. 1 in Paris. Ciara, Lindsay Lohan, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen and Anna Wintour, Vogue’s venerable editor-in-chief, were just some of the big names on the front row during the debut.
Supermodels Chanel Iman, Jourdan Dunn and Karlie Kloss strutted down the catwalk in plush over sized furs, metallic pants, deep plunging necklines, and bondage style dresses featured in West’s “Dw” Collection.
Being the lyrical genius Mr. West is, it’s no surprise that fashion critics were more than ready to be tough on Yeezy’s newfound passion for fashion. His show drew mixed reviews from many fashion journalists who described the collection as having more flash than substance, and the clothes as ill-fitting.
One critic, Christina Binkley, from Heard on the Runway, said the look was “Herve Leger meets Donald Trump.” A little rough don’t you think?
“Zippers were unzipped. Snakeskin pants were metallic silver. There was a very large and furry fur backpack. For an arctic Spring/Summer 2012. Necklines plunged so precariously that they seemed a personal shout-out to J-Lo. Heavy beading – including one breastplate of a top – recalled the Flintstones. Strips of crocodile hung without reason from a leather skirt. There were lots and lots of tight leather pants,” Binkley added.
Long Nguyen of Fashionista wrote, “In fashion, Mr. West has to remember the refrain of the song he preached to us on the show’s soundtrack — ‘You can run but you can’t hide.’ Now that he has put in a great deal of effort into making this showing a reality, Mr. West needs to consider the reality of the fashion business. At a certain level, I think he can have a niche business, one backed by a limited edition sportswear collection and a few accessory items. There were some hints of that sportswear here. It seemed that he might have rushed to put on this show without working out how to cut and merchandise the collection.”
No worries, West didn’t receive all negative responses from his show. Designer Jeremy Scott praised West for all his hard work.
“Everyone probably thought it was going to be another like Jennifer Lopez’s Macy’s line and it’s not, it’s really clear it’s not. Kanye has impeccable taste and you see his taste level is up there. He’s a fan of design across the board. I have five-hour long conversations with him all the time about everything because he’s so obsessed, and I think we got a little bit of an insight into his mind there,” said Scott.
Take a look at the line below. Would you wear his pieces if they hit stores? Do you think critics were being a little too hard on Yeezy?
–mckenzie harris
