Co Fall 2018 Ready-To-Wear...Fashionweekly..On Fow24news.com

Designers Stephanie Danon and Justin Kern are born romantics, though lately they’ve been in a more serious frame of mind. Being based in Los Angeles has made the din of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements even more impossible to ignore....
As a result, there was a more sober tone to their collection this season. Where they once captured their lookbooks against the verdant backdrop of the California coastline, they’re now shooting amid the stark hallways of the city’s art deco architecture. Gone were the billowing sleeves of seasons past; gone were the delicate ruffles. In their place a sharper, more restrained sense of elegance emerged. What was once a brand populated almost entirely by dresses, has also sprouted suiting for the first time. The feminine floral prints and pretty balletic colors of Fall were been wiped clean, too, replaced with a subdued palette of black, white, and gray. In fact the only vibrant color in the mix today was a potent shade of rebel red.

That said, the design duo hasn’t abandoned their feminine charms altogether. After all, their version of Le Smoking is drawn along far less strict lines—in other words, you won’t find any traditional cigarette pants here, only culottes. Co also turned their attention to their outerwear department, which makes sense when you consider the protective nature of coats and jackets. The intricate embroidered jacquard coats were at once ladylike and strong; the same was true of the neat knife-pleated dresses.

Articulating the ever-changing political climate via clothing doesn’t come naturally to every designer. Though in these unprecedented times, the idea of burying one’s head in the sand seems positively irresponsible. In that sense, there’s no denying that Co is redefining what the wardrobe of a empowered, successful woman should look like in their own quietly sophisticated way.