New York Fashion Week: G-Star Raw swims with the fishes, sings the blues

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New York -- G-Star Raw’s show at the Hammerstein Ballroom last night was a noticeable departure from past seasons in two ways.

The biggest difference was that although it was still heavy on its signature military-industrial-aviator aesthetic -- chunky leather and denim straps and holsters, flight suit flourishes, rivets and buckles on denim fabrics with all the give of Kevlar vests, for the first time I can remember, the label was hewing close to the prevailing trends seen elsewhere this season -- particularly the love affair with blue.

In addition to the nearly midnight blue of the raw denim, there were solid sky blue and baby blue men’s suits, as well as blue women’s dresses edged in white (one in particular stood out among the futuristic-looking garb as a piece that wouldn’t look out of place on ‘Mad Men’) and an intriguing blue fish (from where I was sitting it looked part whale, part piranha -- let’s call it a ‘whaleranha’) print on suits, skirts, handbags and even shoes.

There also seemed to be a lot more skin showing than in past seasons -- with a selection of skimpy denim bikini shorts and flirty dresses for the ladies and above-the-knee board shorts for the men.

But perhaps the most striking departure from past seasons was the finale, which, unlike past seasons, didn’t end with the now expected surprise celebrity guest stepping out to recite a poem (last time around it was Benicio Del Toro, a few seasons ago it was Dennis Hopper).

Despite the optimistic vibe of the collections, it seems the belt-tightening of the recession isn’t over quite yet.

-- Adam Tschorn

Photos: G-Star Raw’s spring / summer 2010 runway

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