It’s official! Kanye West is coming back to the New York Fashion Week calendar for Yeezy Season 5. After shuttling two bus-loads of editors and one Anna Wintour to Roosevelt Island in September — a spontaneous day trip that caused even more headaches than the previous season’s Madison Square Garden extravaganza — Kanye has chosen the comparatively traditional location of Pier 59 Studios at Chelsea Piers. He’ll show on Wednesday 15 at 5pm, a time slot bookended by Anna Sui and Thom Browne.
There’s little else known about the upcoming collection. Rumors have been swirling about for a while now that Kanye is working on a second Adidas line inspired by Calabasas, the land of gated communities and strip malls that also informed Season 4. The suburban mall chic line — which Kim Kardashian’s Snapchat has promised will feature name-plate necklaces and Calabasas-branded sweatpants — is expected to drop in spring this year. Maybe he’s brought the date forward a few weeks?
Pier 59 Studios is also an interesting choice of location, not just because it’s normal, but also because it’s suited to both full-blown runway shows and low-profile presentations. We wouldn’t describe any of Kanye’s past presentations as modest — Season 3 was basically a giant listening party for his latest album, The Life of Pablo, while his first two outings spawned a thousand think pieces. But if there’s anything Ye likes more than muted sportswear, it’s being unpredictable. His frequent collaborator Vanessa Beecroft has been known to arrange models on pieces of furniture. If the Calabasas line doesn’t make an appearance, perhaps that equally anticipated IKEA one will. Basically anything is possible.
Credits
Text Hannah Ongley
Photography Emily Manning