Yesterday in Chelsea, a third day of spring 2012 shows in New York ended with Joseph Altuzarra’s urban jungle, where thick mats of fake green shrubs provided the runway backdrop, drawing every major fashion editor currently in town. (Anna Wintour, who has been missing some shows in favor of attending the U.S. Open, was there, smiling on the front row.) When the techno jungle music started, the parrots starting flying — on the clothes, that is.
The prints, which could have been mistaken for florals if you didn’t look closely, were actually images of tropical birds. Contrasted with sexy black and white pieces, many in leather, the collection was almost the sartorial equivalent of Rio meets the Matrix. “I was really interested in the idea of taking nature indoors,” explained Altuzarra after the show, where he talked to reporters between hugs from his very proud family. “The idea of the print really came from Hawaiian shirts and the challenge was how to make it interesting and make it chic and make it something that our customer would want to wear.” In the video, find out why he wanted to bring thick, heavy brows back, and what his opening model did to her hair before walking the runway.
