Ingo Wilts’ tenure at Hugo Boss is proving a fruitful one. In two seasons, the Chief Brand Officer has brought the German house back to its minimal roots to celebrate what makes it so great. This season, Wilts was perfectly in synch with New York’s tailoring mood, which saw suits for men and women shown in every which way. Wilts married a classical grasp of the art with an eye for unexpected color and shapes.
The show opened with a variety of takes on a design classic — the camel coat, which came as a loose jacket, suit, and cozy looking ankle-length version. Wilts was inspired by Chelsea gallery types, the kind of man or woman who marries both confidence (the art market seems robust) with a dress sense inspired by the work they prowl past. In their beige tones, the models looked modern, yet without the severity or coldness often associated with the brand — frankly they looked very cozy in their slouchy knits.
Not that this affair was entirely oriented around comfort. True to his art scene inspiration, Wilts’ enormous runway was mirrored, reflecting yellow neon lights ahead, giving the venue the air of a particularly filmic factory floor (will robots wear clothes, one wonders?). Amid a monochrome passage mid-show, where we were treated to charcoal suiting and long white puffas, there were flashes of pink. Alana Zimmer looked elegant in a flamingo, knee-length skirt suit, followed by a voluminous sweater and oversize coat all in the same shade. Wilts played with proportion to great effect, even if it was subtle, and even dabbled in evening wear, seen to best effect on Sasha Pivarova in a white satin dress. Wilts sees the art world through a fashion designer’s eyes.
