Anna Sui was drawn to undersea creatures and watery environments. “I think it was all the coverage of the reef bleaching,” she said backstage. “I’m not an activist or anything like that, but I’ve never seen anything more beautiful than the Great Barrier. That’s why I think it’s important to make a statement now.” Given the state of affairs, New York Fashion Week has strangely made few statements on climatic, social or other matters, so credit goes to Sui for reminding us that we just experienced the hottest summer on record. Hurricane Lee, now threatening the East Coast, became one of only 40 Category 5 storms since 1924 to rip through the Atlantic Ocean.
As Sui admitted, she’s not in the habit of delivering messages, and if she hadn’t talked about this summer’s ocean heat backstage before the show, it wouldn’t have been clear that that was on her mind. This collection, like all of Sui’s work, is based on in-depth research. She looked and fell in love with it My octopus teacher, pasted illustrations of mermaids on the wall in her studio and dreamed up vintage pieces with sea themes, then let those references inform her fabric development. Textiles rippled with color, shimmering with the iridescence of mother-of-pearl and dripping with sequins of water droplets. There was a lot of variety, but when the models stood on stage at the end of the show, they formed a complementary ecosystem, just like our precious and endangered reefs.
If that drives the metaphor, Sui isn’t afraid to wear her intentions on her sleeve. She showed off cute chunky pastel cardigans knitted with fish, and backstage pointed to a T-shirt with a mermaid chatting with a school of fish. Her program notes, for anyone who was so moved, include a link to missionblue.orgwhich works to increase public awareness and support for a global network of marine protected areas.
