Gilles Mendel has prima ballerinas on the brain. Earlier this summer, he designed the costumes for the New York City Ballet s production of Call Me Ben; then he shot his Resort lookbook in the dance studio; and now his Spring collection finds him back at the barre.
Presumably, you won t hear any complaints from this designer about the tents new location in Lincoln Center, the NYCB s home stage. Mendel s corps were dressed in Madame Grès-inspired draped silk chiffon and jersey dresses in powdery, neutral makeup tones of peach, blush pink, and icy gray. (To make the palette pop, they were shown with a bright coral lip and brilliant orange wedges—Louboutins wrapped with grosgrain ankle wraps, ballet-slipper style.) The dresses were all variations on a theme, but thanks to the exquisite hand-pleating and ruching, Mendel s uptown ladies shouldn t mind. No complaints, either, about those Mendel furs, here Tibetan lamb and shadow fox in heart-shaped dégradé boleros; they re mounted on tulle to make them semitransparent and featherlight. ("A new little summer sweater," according to Mendel.) The look overall was lighter, simpler than it s been before; "a little bit more easy," the designer acknowledged after the show. And there was a smart concession to downtown, too, in eveningwear, of all places: ankle-length pleated mousseline gowns shown with flat sandals, the way kids are wearing long these days.
