New York Fashion Week: Beautiful scenery

Ralph Lauren, 79, and Tommy Hilfiger, 68, are the veterans of New York Fashion Week. Both have already made countless fashion shows. They know how to stage a show. While Lauren has been an integral part of the US show calendar for the past few years, Hilfiger has only been back in New York since the recent issue. Interestingly enough, their shows were very similar in approach: both designers revived the glamor of bygone days to show their designs - and in both cases, the packaging was more promising than the content.

Ralph Lauren invited to Lower Manhattan on Wall Street on Saturday. In one of the buildings there, he had an old jazz restaurant reconstructed. "Ralph's Club" shone in the Art Deco design of the twenties. The armchairs shone silver, and the chandeliers were reflected in the polished floor.

Tommy Hilfiger showed in Upper Manhattan. As a backdrop, he chose the Apollo Theater in Harlem. On the street in front of the famous venue, a stage was set up for the musicians and dancers of the Mama Foundation for the Arts. They delivered the soundtrack to the fashion show with a mix of funk music and classics like Aretha Franklin's "Respect".

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Janelle Monae sang for Ralph Lauren. The singer performed on a table for the guests dressed according to the invitation in black and white. Only the actor Henry Golding ("Crazy Rich Asians") seemed to have skipped the dress code and appeared in the blue velvet boxing. Nevertheless, the outfit was a good match for the show, as the models exclusively presented glittering dresses and tuxedo looks.

The defilee was opened by Gigi Hadid, who wore wide-cut black trousers, a cummerbund, a dress shirt and a bow tie. Hanging over her shoulders she had a gray, crystal-embellished herringbone coat. Most of the other 36 of the Ralph Lauren collection's fall 2019 looks also revolved around the tuxedo. Adapted as dress with black skirt and white chiffon top, or as one piece with waistcoat for the upper body.

The Hilfiger design team was inspired by the late seventies and early eighties. Design team, because the fashion designer again had the actress Zendaya on board. The "TommyxZendaya" collection is not groundbreaking, but more luxurious and less sporty than what you're used to from the brand. There is a lot of leather, velvet and (artificial) fur, as well as tweed and lots of checks, polkadots and snakeskin. The accessories were wide-brimmed hats, headscarves and big bows.

"He let me do whatever I wanted, which was great," Zendaya told AP news agency. For the 23-year-old, it is already the second collection together with Hilfiger, who was also full of praise for his design partner.

Overall, the Hilfiger show was more varied than Ralph Lauren's. Not only in terms of fashion, but also the casting: While Hilfiger also fuller women were seen, there were in "Ralph's Club" only the usual model type with Gardemaß. It's unlikely that things will be different until the end of the fashion week on Wednesday. The catwalks in New York were known for their diversity.