Ahead of his fall show, Bach Mai began documenting his show prep on Instagram, exposing his struggles to create a collection in just 32 days with limited resources. Despite the designer’s good humor, it is a rather moving story, the moral of which may be that there is no substitute for time. Time to not just make and remake garments, but time to step away from the work and edit and refine it. The clock wasn’t in Mai’s favor this season; his La Dévoyée show was just that, unfortunately misplaced, mainly due to an overload of ideas.
“After last season, that was a very personal collection [it was dedicated to memory of his recently deceased father], I wanted to refocus what I thought my brand was about… and there’s always the idea of a courtesan. I like this idea of the classic with a touch of fetish,” he said. Mai’s interest in transgressive women, who are both powerful and vulnerable, led him to Catherine Deneuve in Belle du Jour, a story about a bourgeois woman’s “descent into depravity,” as the show notes put it. The influence of this character was clearly visible in the 60s shapes and scarf prints. Natalie Portman’s role as a stripper Closer introduced shine and fringe to the collection. And Kylie Minogue’s FeverThe era’s get-ups influenced the fringed ribbon top that was part of the first look and the folded ribbon pieces, which veered into Gucci territory in Tom Ford (as did some skirts with semi-sheer inserts) . All this seemed to distract Mai from his passion for couture, which ultimately became most evident in his signature dresses.
The beauty of some fabrics was undeniable. This is the first season the brand is showing jackets, and one in silver tinsel from Hurel, one of Mai’s mainstays, was particularly effective, as was its opposite, made from garment-dyed, washed nylon. Elements of Mai’s popular bomber jacket were nicely applied to the jacket of a teal evening pantsuit to great effect, the trousers in the second look were well cut and the ‘X-ray’ florals (on the back of the opening look) were well done. Elsewhere, some of the gloss effects were stunning, but that seems to go against the designer’s stated aim.
“I want to give seedy,” he declared on Instagram (which means something dirty yet intriguing), but all previous evidence suggests the designer aligns more closely with two other L-words, luxury and generosity. Said Mai: “We’ve been the most diverse show in New York for two seasons in a row and we’re hoping for a third.” Hopefully he will have more time to process these contradictions next season
