FALL 2009, the first two days in NYC

I was a little surprised at the overall tone of the collections coming down the runways. The designs seemed angry, a little chaotic, and hardened. Maybe they were mad at the fact that their friends could not show with them because of cuts, or that sales are down because the economy is in the toilet, and the world is in a recession. There has been a notable change in silhouette recently that is reminiscent of 1930's styling (oh, the Great Depression...) but fall seemed a little more post-apocalyptic than that. I think I was expecting something more forward thinking, a little positive reinforcement of what life will be like after we get through this little disaster. Instead, there was LOTS of black (no big surprise), lots of asymmetry and wild cutting, and hard shine. My favorite looks are posted above. Top: Koi Swannagate, Victoria Beckham (that collection is surprisingly good), Herve Leger, Elise overland Preen, Ohne Titel, Diane Von Furstenburg, Alexander Wang