Last summer, Tanya Taylor visited the Elaine de Kooning House and Studio in East Hampton, N.Y. Inspired by the abstract artist’s “boldness of spirit,” Taylor was influenced to imbue her fall collection with more of an art-school-girl feeling, additionally staging her look book and runway film within the artist’s former home and studio. Although known for her hand-painted prints and colorful, feminine, optimistic designs, Taylor took a step in a newer, elevated direction for fall with artfully refined and slightly moody designs.
The look: A bridge between playful artistry and urban sophistication.
Quote of note: “It’s been two years of working virtually, and this is the first we’ve been able to be as hands-on and tactile as we want, making it feel like we can put time into fabric and silhouette development,” Taylor explained, adding, “It felt like we took a lot of risks with silhouettes and fabrics. Figuring out who this girl is in this elevated art studio made it all feel really focused.”
Key pieces: Structured, voluminous blouses and dresses (with subtle bustier influences); artful occasionwear (black miniskirts and dresses with rhinestone detailing, or a drop-waist, full-skirted white frock with feather trim, paired with a matching feather-embroidered sweater); plenty of printed and colorful knits (a pink velour sweater, burgundy intarsia gloves and punchy orange flounced skirt look, or fluid dresses); elevated leather and denim layers.
You May Also Like
The takeaway: Styling was a strong takeaway from the collection; one could easily imagine Taylor’s looks stepping out of one of de Kooning’s works directly onto the streets.