Memory is both a potent artistic and cultural catalyst. Memory as archive, memory as tradition, memory as meaning-making, and as emotional processing; translated into the sartorial it can represent a second skin of sorts, an embodiment of cultural heritage, and an embodied manifestation of self-hood and lineage.
The location for this season’s Anna Bolina runway show is a nondescript windowed room off the J train in Lower Manhattan.
Until recently, New York Fashion Week felt a little dull. It’s true that heritage American brands like Ralph, Tommy, Michael Kors et al do Upper East Side collar-popping better than most, but beyond striped rugby shirts and oversized poplin, pre-pandemic NYFW was lacking a little panache.