What does Ralph Lauren, Americana magnate, and the Hamptons, Americana incarnate, have to do with Australian fashion? Horses padded around guests taking their seats at the brand’s “World of Ralph Lauren” Spring show, the first of New York Fashion Week, this past 5th September.
Luminaries like Tom Hiddleston, Jude Law, and Laura Dern all took their seats amongst fashion bigwigs (Anna Wintour and Derek Blasberg) to watch uber-supermodels, the likes of Naomi Campbell, Christie Turlington, and Lucky Blue Smith, swan down the runway.
In all of the cello-playing, horse-trotting, champagne-sipping, not a single attendee was without glowing admiration of Mr. Lauren himself. Queer Eye’s Antoni Porowski, interviewing on behalf of Ralph Lauren, got 20 minutes of gushing footage from decked-out celebrities in variations on navy blazers, gold buttons, and cream chinos.
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And yet, for an on-paper tell of out-of-touchiness, it was, as Colman Domingo puts it, “for everyone”. In an industry where a handful of eponymous designers still handle the reins, Lauren remains relevant– showcasing the literal “world” he’s built.
Designs were what we’ve come to expect from the king of prep: eagle-eyed tailoring on fun-loving fabrics like white pinstripes, ombre sequins, quilted dressing gowns, and nautical influences. Formal blazers were artfully paired with distressed denim and Yankees caps, a masterclass in styling otherwise loud statement pieces. Drawing on looks from Collection, RRL, Polo, and Purple Label, the clothes themselves were what we’ve come to expect from America’s king of prep. Amply cut tailoring was a dominant theme: imagined this season as white pinstripes, ombre sequins, quilted dressing gowns and nautical-wear.
Then there was that classic Ralph Lauren hat trick: a dinner jacket paired with distressed denim and Yankees dad cap – a masterful way to do ‘statement’ styling.
The vast multiverse of aesthetics Lauren is able to call upon (from the Gatsby-esque formality of Purple Label to RRL’s cowboycore) have enabled him to bring order to a collection that, in a lesser designer’s hands, might unravel at any given moment. In this way, The Ralph Lauren World isn’t just across the collection, but within the outfit. For a brand which has extended from the very formal (Purple Label) to the cowboy casual (RRL), to the fratboy prep (Polo), Lauren proves a joining thread of sprezzatura usually reserved for the chaotically chic.
Pair a breton stripe tee with a patchwork denim overshirt, a velvet slipper with distressed denim, a bomber with a silk slip, or a yellow safety jacket with cream pants and a madras blazer, and you’ve proven your citizenship in Lauren’s World. For an essentially American brand, there was a worldliness in the stuffed pocket square and patchwork denim chore jackets– which would belong in Sydney, Marrakech, or Amsterdam alike.
Men, women, and children all walked the runway together, like a queue of Upstaters touring the Summer Camp’s stables. Nonetheless, the mix of high and low, bright polos and silk jackets, prep and proper, all gave an impression of wistful nostalgia for the worldly empire of Ralph Lauren, as the sun set on the expansive collection.
Needless to say: a day upstate, taking in the sea air has never looked so good.
Watch the entire Ralph Lauren Spring 2025 runway below.
