Rodarte S/S 2014 New York

[lady stardust]

This is scary--so bad.

 

[Miss Dalloway]

I was never one of those people who likes a brand, and expects them to keep to their signature without exploring new looks & ideas. But THIS is unacceptable!

 

[Mutterlein]

Don't know what everyone is talking about. Rodarte has always been bad and tacky.

 

[Phuel]

^^^ Yeah... looks like the same terrible mess to me (as perfectly exemplified by ogepma's three selections).

Their collections have always resembled a walking pile of mismatched swatches-- they just don't know the meaning of restraint. At least this time, the mess has a very literal reference, as trashy as it may be.

 

[Luxx]

Since we can all agree that collections are no longer just insider fashion events made solely for buyers and editors, we have to accept that the showing of a collection is at least in part a media and publicity event. As such one of the goals of a collection is to get as many people talking about it as humanly possible. From that standpoint this is a resounding success, every blogger will talk about this, every twitter will tweet about this. These images will get maximum exposure on Tumblr and show up on the back of the aforementioned tacky-chic celebrities.

Who is going to buy Rodarte? Whoever it is will probably pick up a shoe, a logo printed sweatshirt (one that says "Radarte" for maximum ironic appeal) or a piece of jewelry. The clothes are already so cost prohibitive that no one outside of a select few will ever be able to actually purchase them. Meanwhile they'll get pulled for editorials and stylists trying to do a Carlyne Cerf-esque look will cream themselves over how ~urban~ it is to have a girl in a backwards baseball cap.

But whatever, the wheel will keep on turning. I'm glad they mixed it up and did something unquestionably different because if they were focusing on another business model they could just release the same exact etherealfairie, surfchic, mernymph thing that seems to make people happy.

 

[WilliamsLe010919]

Are they trying to pull a Heidi Slimane? I mean putting out ugly clothes to shock people and get attention?
At least, SLP clothes are wearable. this is just plain bad.

 

[GIVENCHYlover]

Saint Laurent story. Bad collection, BIG success.

In this case we can't speak about a big success.

 

[disco54]

When I first saw it, I immediately thought of Rihanna for Riverisland lol, and lots of members saw the same too lol

 

[LagerfeldBoy]

Robin G.'s review went IN on them. They're going for that whole *****-hood-street wear look but it's missing the attitude. While I do love the pieces and how bad *** it looks, it's missing the brilliance that makes Rodarte fabulous.

 

[YoninahAliza]

Blurgh. I'm just disappointed by what Rodarte's put on the runway, once again. I went in with an open mind before clicking on the photographs but oh my, the outfits are devastatingly awful. It's hard to see how sisters went from creating beautiful spidery and slightly witchy dresses to Daisy Dukes. To be honest, the transition to this point doesn't feel authentic at all, which is rather disappointing.

 

[TheoG]

Since we can all agree that collections are no longer just insider fashion events made solely for buyers and editors, we have to accept that the showing of a collection is at least in part a media and publicity event. As such one of the goals of a collection is to get as many people talking about it as humanly possible. From that standpoint this is a resounding success, every blogger will talk about this, every twitter will tweet about this. These images will get maximum exposure on Tumblr and show up on the back of the aforementioned tacky-chic celebrities.

Who is going to buy Rodarte? Whoever it is will probably pick up a shoe, a logo printed sweatshirt (one that says "Radarte" for maximum ironic appeal) or a piece of jewelry. The clothes are already so cost prohibitive that no one outside of a select few will ever be able to actually purchase them. Meanwhile they'll get pulled for editorials and stylists trying to do a Carlyne Cerf-esque look will cream themselves over how ~urban~ it is to have a girl in a backwards baseball cap.

But whatever, the wheel will keep on turning. I'm glad they mixed it up and did something unquestionably different because if they were focusing on another business model they could just release the same exact etherealfairie, surfchic, mernymph thing that seems to make people happy.

Couldn't have agreed more with comment.

 

[simple_elegance]

They have to be trolling us right now. Seriously.

 

[lelaid]

This whole show is a disaster. It's just a f**king mess. Oh how the mighty have fallen.

 

[neur0se]

They are trying too hard to be comercial and relevant to the current state of pop culture. While they have successfully accomplished that in some previous collections (spring and fall 2011 for example), this one is just a failure.

However, I might say I'm happy that Kate and Laura have completely destroyed the fake girlish ethereal aura that some people use to identify Rodarte with. They have moved on to different things, which is good, but right now they are lost.

 

[Label Basher]

Well ditto what everyone else has said. I can't believe what I'm seeing. I don't want to believe that this is Rodarte. It's just wrong. So very wrong.

This season NYC has sucked balls but I had hope for at least Rodarte to show a solid collection. This is just mental.

 

[bluestar]

I'm not even going to explain why I think this is terrible because everyone has said already countless times...just looks so cheap and ugly. Come on Rodarte, you used to be so good!

 

[Label Basher]

From their FACEBOOK page -

The Rodarte SS14 collection was inspired by Los Angeles: Hair Metal Bands, the Sunset Strip, Rockabilly, Old Hollywood and the 1980s.

108 likes. Those people obviously have dirt in their eyes.

 

[Marc10]

Robin G.'s review went IN on them.

I just read it

Robin Givhan: ‘Cultural Tourism’ As Seen at Rodarte

In fashion, trying to envision a new way of dressing, coming up with a different iteration of a silhouette, or attempting to push the outré into the mainstream means taking risks. When the risk pays off, everyone wins: the designer, the consumer, the retailer. God bless fashion’s gamblers. They keep the industry churning.

But pity them, too. Because when things go wrong — really, truly wrong — sometimes they end up with a heaping pile of ugly.

Rodarte's designers, Kate and Laura Mulleavy, took a big leap of faith with a spring collection that attempted to give L.A. street-style icons — particularly its swaggering cholos — a thick coat of glamour. To that end, the sisters shrouded shiny leopard skirts with a scrim of trembling fringe. They stitched zebra- and tiger-stripe dresses out of silk and included hand-cut panels of satin. They trimmed faux-leather briefs with zebra-striped ruffles. A bra-style top shimmered with silver fringe and slim-cut dresses were embroidered with giant scorpions. None of it was especially attractive. But more important, none of it exuded the kind of nonchalant "I don’t care what you think" confidence it should have.

Certainly, attempting to domesticate a style that was born from defiance and filled with its own wild glamour has a precedent. Fashion companies have reaped great rewards by appropriating street culture and sanitizing it for broad consumption. And you'll find no argument here about who owns what and who has the right to exploit it. But the Mulleavys did not do justice to their inspiration. By removing an aesthetic that percolated on the street from its natural habitat and putting it into the rarefied space of a Chelsea gallery, the Mulleavys, in effect, left it open to misrepresentation and ridicule. Styles that germinate on the street form a protective armor of their own. They bond the wearer to a particular tribe. They communicate a bond across a crowded street corner. They bolster the strut of people who've been disenfranchised or ostracized from the Establishment. They impart confidence.

Yet there was little swagger on the Rodarte runway. For all the limp ennui in the air, the models might as well have been strolling along in floral sundresses. The models done up in chunky gold jewelry, studded belts, and trucker hats mostly called to mind cultural tourism. They looked as if they’d just come from some souvenir stand hawking “authentic” homeboy tchotchkes.

Sure, the Mulleavys elevated the street sensibility with better fabric, hand stitching, and a high-minded philosophy. But the clothes did not look better for it. On the runway, they read as cheap — even though they most certainly are not. And even more disappointing, the models looked cheap, too. They didn’t move as if they owned the provocativeness of bare midriffs, tiny shorts, and revealing bra-tops. They looked meek. Models who were allowed to show more personality would have helped the presentation. What makes street style so attractive is not the cut of the cloth but the attitude of the wearers. They are able to take something that is typically modest and make it look like it’s worth a million bucks. They can wear a T-shirt and make it look tough because they bring strength and aggression in their carriage. And trucker hats on girls can look sexy simply because of the look in their eyes. In this case, however, their eyes simply looked empty.

nymag

 

[jeanclaude]

Slimane went back into grunge. Rodarte went straight into "Jersey Shore". Snooki will approve it. I simply don´t like it.

 

[VogueDisciple93]

Dear God
Rodarte has long fallen off my list of shows to look forward to, but I never expected it to get this bad. I don't expect this from anyone other than Jeremy Scott. This is just vile. The opening look is one of the worst I have ever seen.