Hear Me Out, Mirror Palais Held the Best Show of NYFW
- Amber Louise
- Sep 15, 2022
- 2 min read
Updated: Jan 13, 2023
For days now, I’ve been scrolling through an endless feed filled with New York Fashion Week (NYFW) content. And… For days now, I’ve been disappointed with the collections I’ve been seeing. I felt the shows I had been seeing were severely lacking in ‘je ne sais quoi.’ That was until I opened Instagram on Tuesday to find myself in a trance, watching snippets and zooming into photos of the Mirror Palais Spring/Summer 2023 collection. Known for expertly crafted and immensely detailed garments, the fashion brand boasts a large cult following, and yet, I never expected to be so enthralled by one of their collections.
Set in a small church in the West Village of New York City, Marcelo Gaia, creative director of Mirror Palais, knew exactly how to foreshadow his latest collection (and debut at NYFW). It was almost as if I was watching a Renaissance painting come to life… If that painting was scarcely religious and substantially modernized. Gaia elegantly draped sheer fabrics over the female frame in a sense that felt ethereal… Heavenly, even.
In stark contrast to the flowy skirts and dresses were pieces created with structured fabrics that hugged the body in a different kind of way. Though they still accentuated the female form, they were heavier, with denim corsets and body-hugging mini skirts and dresses. Before you say (or think) anything, both opposing design choices worked in harmony, creating a display that worked towards a spectacle of revealing modesty. Let’s just say that the thongs peeping through sheer dresses and mega mini skirts didn’t feel at all out of place in the church… Although I don’t suggest wearing them to a Sunday Service.
Every detail of every look told its own story, from the hooded elements reminiscent of nun’s veils to the ruffled gown dubbed the ‘Jellyfish Dress.’ Large cross necklaces and earrings were yet another nod to the church, bringing opulence to the neutral and jewel-toned garments. Still, the flower chokers both large and small stole my heart. I can confidently say they are the accessory of SS23. From this collection, we can also gather that fashion flossing is going nowhere. Gaia reinvented the wheel with this trend, producing gowns, trousers, skirts and tops with thin strings tied up to create bubbled ruching.
When speaking to a reporter from Fashion Channel on YouTube, Gaia spoke on designing for every body shape, saying that “there [are] [...] careful considerations that can be made when dressing different body types” (Fashion Channel, 2022). This recognition of the importance of diversity when designing and showing collections does not go unnoticed, especially in an industry that continues to create for size 0 women. Creating a diverse runway also meant delving into menswear for the first time this season, designing relaxed suits paired with the same flower chokers and cross necklaces.
Marcelo Gaia designed a collection I didn’t know I needed. It was contemporary but felt like a painting coming to life. It’s bold of me to say that they held the best show I’d seen during NYFW, but I stand by that statement. After all, I finally understand the saying, ‘life imitates art.’
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