Huishan Zhang keeps a filmography of titles he has watched in a “notebook” in his head, ready to pluck references whenever it feels right. For fall, it was Valley of the Dolls that he drew inspiration from, translated both directly—as jacquards and hand-beading evocative of the film’s cinematography and set—and indirectly as an attitude. “The costumes are literally divine,” he said at a preview. “They touched me, as a fashion designer.”
Centered around the “simplicity and modernity” of the 1960s, with regard to silhouettes and spirit, the collection took the Huishan Zhang woman from tweed suiting pinned with pearl and crystal brooches, to drop-hem denim dresses, and on to his calling card: eveningwear. The designer’s trademark embellished duchesse satin dresses were ready for a red-carpet outing, as were dresses in sequins and neoprene—the latter has been a success for Zhang—and several crafted from a new laser-cut embroidered-floral fabric backed with tulle. His suggested after-dark accessory was fingerless leather gloves.
Technicalities are always at the heart of Zhang’s offerings, and he was most excited about a faux fur that was shredded and manipulated to emulate feathers, which were scattered across a cream coat (discreetly padded on the inside for warmth) and a powder pink dress. He looked to a black-and-white picture of a spiked-hair punk as a reference for the feathered bonnets that were styled with these creations.
Nods to his London clients—some of whom were seated to watch his show at the Dorchester, which opened with “White Rabbit” by Jefferson Airplane (a fitting environment and soundtrack for his “rebellious yet elegant” fall muse)—arrived in the form of transparent raincoats with expressive contrast piping, worn atop the tweeds and evening gowns. “The muse is her,” he said. “This time we really feel her.”
