The maxims of Donna Karan abounded for resort: “I wanted to show the purity, the simplicity,” she said before the show. “It’s very cleansing. It’s almost like a little bit of a new beginning.” Show notes were titled “East Meets West, Black Meets White,” and delineated the new “serene 7 easy pieces,” including a worker jacket, a simple top and the modern kimono.
The cleansed palette of ivory and black captured the calm Karan was striving for on trapeze jackets and wide-leg cropped pants and Bermudas that were elegantly casual, if at times a bit clunky. Karan, who noted she has never been to China, turned to Asia in general as inspiration for the collection, showing an abundance of wrap kimono tops and obilike constructions in architectural silhouettes with jacquard details. While the neutral colors and cuts amounted to a glamorous Zen, they made one grateful for the few pretty pops of pink and the softly effusive feather and embroidery embellishments used for eveningwear.