This week’s show forefronted the audacious delight in “living with authenticity”.
Marc Jacobs imagined “a deeper pursuit of joy” in his Fall 2024 collection on Tuesday, July 2nd. As models walked the runway adorned with vast, faux eyelids obscuring their eyes, the designer’s show notes commented on seeking out moments of “love over hate” and looking towards fashion for “bold and courageous self-expression”.
The show was held in the New York Public Library, mere days after the city’s libraries were saved from devastating budget cuts. Explicitly rebelling against the limits of “absurd conservatism and societal norms”, exaggerated proportions proliferated in a notable extension of Jacobs’ doll-like Spring 2024 collection. Oversized jackets, enlarged buttons and dramatically roomy slingbacks all found their place on the runway, exploring fashion’s potential for “personal transformation”.
The first look was a white dress referencing Marilyn Monroe’s iconic moment over a subway grate in The Seven Year Itch. Whilst the original image highlights movement and flimsiness, Jacob’s reinterpretation, as with the rest of the collection, is hyper-structured; it calls attention to the staticness of the famed image as opposed to the fluidity of the original dress. The stiffness of the fabrics, along with the length of the show itself – clocking in at under seven minutes – mimics the designer’s own routine of “finding pause in reflection”. The first line of the show notes – “joy, period” – emphasizes the curtness of a moment reserved for pure glee even as it suggests a need to find unabashed fun in fashion. For the attendees, which included Chloe Sevigny, Debbie Harry and Sofia Coppola, Jacobs provided a snapshot of delight as well as a moment to take stock of how fashion can grapple with the fact that “the future remains unwritten”.
Playfulness abounded in Minnie Mouse-esque polka dots and Disney princess-style gowns. The real life iterations of animated inspirations were made even more cartoonish by Jacobs’ use of scale. Accessories continued this theme: large bags, exaggerated gloves and elaborately peaked shoes were all mainstays of the collection. Bold, block colors and a litany of gems cemented the show’s gleeful feel. Extrapolating references to previous collections and emboldening classic pieces (such as a giant Breton-striped jumper) served as the perfect celebration of forty years of the brand, as well as proof of its forward-looking identity.
All images courtesy of Marc Jacobs.
