If you thought of Nadia Comaneci when you saw the red, blue, and silver-star leotard on the mannequin that greeted you at the Bowery Hotel, then you were on Alexander McQueen s wavelength. The Olympics were the designer s subtle, and sometimes not so subtle, theme for his secondary line, now in its fourth season. That meant a sporty green parka with a drawstring waist and patent racing stripes, a short-sleeve red "warm-up" shirt jacket worn with a coated-denim skirt, and a poster-print romper. Taken to extremes, it translated into a dress or a skirt with colorful plastic rings—à la the Olympic symbol—inserted between curving seams. Meanwhile, a number of pieces—sweater tank, button-down, and perforated-leather cape—were decorated with what could have been some of Keith Haring s more provocative squiggles.
In other words, it was edgy, but not pod-dress-and-leather-leggings edgy. Which means it pleases both McQueen and his retailers.
