Known as one of the pioneers of draping, a hot trend season after season, designer Yigal Azrouel's fall/winter 2010 collection presented a first for him. We witnessed his flow, but draping mingled among matched and tailored suits, with accents of strong color and Swarovski crystals.
Having perused the collection at Azrouel's studio the other day, it was glorious to see the pieces floating down the runway. Hair and makeup was kept very simple to let the clothes speak for themselves. Fall 2010 marks a slight shift in the designer's aesthetic, as he brings more of a structured architecture to dresses, coats and pants while at the same time maintaining their femininity. That dichotomy is a Azrouel signature, and showed best in a tough leather jacket with a cascade of Swarovski crystals on a removable hip panel, an ethereal, long-sleeved gown that brings slate gray to an octave of nighttime glamour, and a power pinstripe sheath dress whose deeply slashed back throws in some sexpot at the very end.
Overall, this was a collection balanced by texture, silhouette and, perhaps most obviously, pops of color. Blacks and grays anchored serious pops of color, including a pansy purple long-sleeved bodycon gown with back cut-outs and an exposed zipper, as well as an enveloping crimson cocoon coat that screamed Linda Evangelista circa 1991.
A magnificent tailored spin on Azrouel's signature style gives us a fresh new perspective on an enduringly fashion-forward designer.
