Marc Jacobs Spring 2025, and other stuff
This Week In Fashion
The amount of creative director announcements is getting so nonstop, I just don’t care anymore, but I’ll tell you about them all anyway. I also want to write reviews for so many collections from NYFW, but I am but one person, with a life, so I have to pick and choose, and that is no fun. ALSO, I’m putting together a fun fashion history post for Valentine’s Day!!!
Anyway, let’s get into it.
Marc Jacobs kicked off New York fashion week a touch earlier than scheduled with a collection entitled Courage. His latest line up of dolls made their way down the runway in a different kind of power dressing than the usual 80s sharp shoulder. Instead, he continued his exploration of exaggerated proportions, but this time in a way that was a bit rounder and more bulbous. It was like the models were wearing bumpers as armour to help with their courageous pursuits, yet not without a softness that paralleled the show notes in “daring to be vulnerable in the face of criticism and failure.”
Lately it seems like we are being fed a new reason to panic every single morning for breakfast. It can become debilitating and make you want to retreat. To disappear into the darkness and let it consume you, but Jacobs reminds us that we are three dimensional beings that cannot be flattened. The joy in expressing ourselves, that was a focus last season, has become a radical act this season. We can relate this collection to Mikhail Bakhtin’s concept of the grotesque body. In contrast to the idealized, classical body that is neat, contained, and perfected, the grotesque body is expansive, exaggerated, and transgressive. It refuses boundaries and embraces transformation, often disrupting conventional beauty norms. In this same way, Jacobs takes traditional styles and distorts them into something larger than life that demands attention and refuses to let its wearer fade into the background.
But the grotesque body is not just about size; it’s about mutation, flux, and contradiction. Here there is a rejection of the sleek, over-calculated minimalism that has dominated fashion cycles in favor of something more absurd, more alive.
Garments were structured, sometimes due to the use of foam padding, other times just due to sheer craft and tailoring, and all had a 1960s, Comme des Garçons twinge, bathed in fan favorite Marc Jacobs-isms. A black itty bitty jacket with shrunken shoulders and large buttons to match its large pleated pants was simple and striking, while a bubbled babydoll dress brought a tear (or two) to my eye. An animal print jacket was hot, knits were playful, and varying textures, like sequins, velvets, and lace, made for a sensual experience. It was like getting a glimpse into the wardrobe of a business woman who isn't afraid to step on some toes, garden gnome boots and all, if it means making changes that will benefit the majority instead of a select few.
Spring 2025 is a theatrical, almost performative embodiment of a new kind of power, a power that is not about assimilation but about transgression. With Courage, Marc Jacobs doesn’t just propose new silhouettes; he proposes a new way of thinking about bodies, identity, and resistance. This is fashion that exists beyond mere aesthetics– it is philosophy in motion, a challenge to traditional forms of authority, and a celebration of the radical act of taking up space.
Many switch ups in fashion this week. For starters, Marco Gobetti is leaving Ferragamo which makes me a little nervy, because he has a secret sauce that I feel Maximilian Davis deservingly benefited from, and I hope he continues to get the right support and love.
Then Piotrek Panszczyk stepped down as creative director of Area and Nicholas Aburn stepped in. Aburn started his career under Tom Ford and then become senior womenswear designer at Alexander W*ng, before being senior design director for Balenciaga Couture. This trajectory makes Area feel right up his ally, but what’s more interesting is how many creative directors are stepping down from brands they’ve started. Area, for example, is quite new as a brand, comparatively, and I feel like Panszczyck has really found his stride in his world building, so I’m sad to see him go.
It doesn’t stop there though. Casey Cadwallader is also stepping down as creative director of Mugler, and honestly, I’m not too crushed by this. I liked a lot of thing Casey did at the brand, but I also couldn’t care less about a lot of the things he did at the brand. After those catsuit, cutout bodysuits I don’t think he ever regained that same momentum, unfortunately.
Then my favorite announcement of them all: Sabato de Sarno is leaving Gucci. Thank GOD! Clearly I haven’t been the biggest fan of his Gucci, but can you blame me? It was sterile, empty, and not at all compelling. While I kind of had an inkling of who the Gucci boy was, I never learned who the Gucci girl was. Kering clearly wanted an immediate increase in sales, the same way Alessandro Michele turned the brand around, and that was never going to happen. So, two things can be true— we don’t give creative directors enough time to find their footing at a brand, but Sabato’s Gucci was also so forgettable and the drop in sale made sense. Anyway, the streets are saying Maria Grazia Chiuri is leaving Dior to go to Gucci (eek) and, like we’ve already talked about, Jonathan Anderson is taking over. Some people are also saying the baton is being passed to Hedi Slimane, which the Italians will hate with what I know about the way he runs his atelier, but I think it’ll make sense. Another name being thrown around is Fabio Zambernardi, who would be a delicious choice. Fabio has been design director at Miu Miu and Prada since 2002, so the sauce is obviously there.
- The Met Gala dress code has been announced as “Tailored For You.” It’s meant to be a nod to the exhibits focus on menswear, and feels like something very easy to follow. Something that you’d have to go out of your way to be offensive about, but, you know.
- Haider Ackermann for Vogue discussing his creative director position at Tom Ford.
- Sarah Burton for Vogue discussing her creative director position at Givenchy.
- Jenna Lyons at the Marc Jacobs show is so, so good. I mean that coat alone does it for me, but this color story is delicious.
- I really enjoyed this pull for Vanessa Kirby. This was for the trailer launch of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and there feels like an obvious reference to the movie here with the colors, but there’s also just something inherently super suit about this dress.
- Well yes! I mean, you know Viktor & Rolf can do no wrong in my eyes and I love that Janelle plays into the wackiness of it.
- I’m sure everyone hate this, but I love it. The reference to Spring 2025 is very clear, and I really enjoy the way multiple elements of that collection were brought together.
- You know I didn’t love this collection, but in the context of Wicked, it’s giving scarecrow, so maybe it works for me a little bit.
- Super hot. I mean, how can you not love a perfectly slouchy suit?
- A very classic Armani Privé look, but it’s very nice. This is definitely one of Cynthia’s simpler looks from this Wicked era.
- I don’t love everything about this dress, but there is a lot I do love. This ribboned pleating is really beautiful, but I don’t think the way it falls apart mid thigh really works. My favorite thing, though, has to be the full lace up back, which makes me think of The Substance and how Demi’s back is stitched up.
- I audibly said, “oh my god” when I saw this and then proceeded to stare for a long time. Beautiful color, beautiful structure, beautiful take on a bell shaped skirt. No notes.
- Never. Misses.
NEVER. MISSES.
- God, I’m just so happy for Alessandro and Valentino. It’s really having a moment and whether it be custom or off the runway, I don’t think I’ve had a single complaint about a look yet. This is obviously a classic black suit, but the yellow silk with the mandarin collar, scarf, and belt is so scrumptious.
- I don’t know you guys, I’m just not a Khaite girl— I often feel like I’m getting gaslit into believing this brand is as incredible as it is. I don’t think it’s all bad, but I think this is a good example of how the clothes often only look good in photos or on a styled runway.
- Finally, I leave you with Anya Taylor-Joy wearing this Alexander McQueen coat in the most perfect way. I like that she held her arms in a way that made her look like she didn’t have any.
So that was this week! Time to go wait for Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl performance.
TTYL!!!
xx