Founded in 1989, New York fashion label DKNY was the defi nition of ’90s urban chic in the Big Apple and beyond. TRACY LEE recalls a long-ago interview with its founder Donna Karan, and checks out its latest collection by a new creative team.
Founded in 1989, New York fashion label DKNY was the defi nition of ’90s urban chic in the Big Apple and beyond. TRACY LEE recalls a long-ago interview with its founder Donna Karan, and checks out its latest collection by a new creative team.
WAY BACK WHEN
It doesn’t seem that long ago that TV series Sex and the City made New York seem like the most fashionable place to be in the entire world. But before that, there was Donna Karan, the wife/mum/businesswoman/ fashion designer every woman admired. Whose clothes embodied not just fashion, but a way of addressing all the roles a woman played, the things she had to do, and the places she had to go, while bearing in mind her need for sensuality, comfort, and freedom of expression. Aside from the high-end eponymous line she founded in 1984, Donna created the more aff ordable, casual DKNY in 1989 out of a desire to dress her then 18-year-old daughter Gabby. Later, she launched DKNY off shoots spanning eyewear, activewear, underwear and fragrances. Her fashion empire was ringing up hundreds of millions in annual sales worldwide, and became public-listed in 1996.
I was initially a little intimidated when tasked to interview her almost 20 years ago in Singapore. But Donna, dressed in a jersey tunic and relaxed calf-length skirt, had flopped into her armchair, kicked off her flats and flashed her black leggings as she crossed her legs in lotus position. She explained she’d just been to yoga class and had thrown a top and skirt over the bodysuit and leggings she’d worked out in, then grabbed a shawl to complete her look.
As she discussed the importance of clothes made for real women’s bodies and lifestyles, and the versatility of Buddhist monks’ robes, I recall feeling charmed and tickled that this designer, whose “Seven Easy Pieces” philosophy (white shirt, black dress, black pull-on pants, large scarf, bodysuit, jacket and a versatile skirt) formed the backbone of her collections, had so eff ortlessly and stylishly layered almost all seven pieces to create her out t of the day! In 2001, her company was acquired by luxury conglomerate LVMH. In June 2015, the 66-year-old announced she was stepping down from Donna Karan and DKNY to focus on Urban Zen, her line of jewellery, homeware and clothing, which brings together luxury, artisanship and philanthropy.
Entering a new era Since then, DKNY has taken a new creative direction, with two designers, Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne, on board. Fittingly, Dao-Yi, 42, and Maxwell, 34, are New York born and bred, and have been making waves in the city’s fashion scene, albeit in haute streetwear for men. The label they co-founded in 2007, Public School, won the 2013 CFDA Swarovski Award for Menswear, the 2014 CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year Award and the 2014 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Award. Their maiden collection for DKNY S/S ’16 just happens to be their first-ever womenswear collection.
Unveiled at New York Fashion Week in September 2015, the togs, which I had a chance to preview in Singapore, are now available in stores. By revisiting Donna’s “Seven Easy Pieces” philosophy, and using the iconic ’90s pinstriped business suit as a reference point, the duo have created a collection that’s minimalist, yet edgy. The power suit shows up in various interesting iterations: as deconstructed, asymmetric or cut-out vests and jackets; buckle-ons to jazz up the plainest shift or shirt/bottom combo; strapless, sleeveless or shortsleeved dresses featuring A-line cuts, mullet bubble hemlines and even that curve-enhancing, sarong-inspired draping Donna was renowned for.
Like Donna Karan was for DKNY, Dao-Yi and Maxwell are infl uenced by the energy of New York City and are known for their knack of combining streetwear and high-fashion elements.
More inspiration comes from that other boardroom staple, the white business shirt. Except Dao-Yi and Maxwell have chosen to focus on the crisp white cotton shirting fabric, creating city shorts, structured peplum tops and tank- or vest-style dresses sharpened up with pleats, twists and tucks. A couple of coats feature black-and-white photo prints of New York – another throwback to ’90s-era DKNY. In the city that never sleeps, calflength sheer dresses in white, black or blue are a decidedly feminine yet unfussy evening-wear option. The clean-lined, sharply tailored collection seems designed for the customer who is more womanly than girlie, and who dresses for corporate success, yet maintains a strong sense of individuality. “Our customers are our peers, everyone who is still on their journey,” Osborne explained in an interview with www.wwd.com. Chow added that the DKNY woman now is one who’s “just getting into her own in terms of career, starting a family… her life is multilayered with diff erent dimensions”. And that, I’m sure, is something many women living in major cities across the world can identify with.
