American designer Narciso Rodriguez painted a colorful Spring 2012 runway show at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York.
The Cuban-American designer, regarded as a master of the cut, discussed his inspiration for the collection.
SOUNDBITE: Narciso Rodriguez, Fashion Designer, saying (English)
"I looked at a great deal of photography, kimonos, the work of a great artist named Kim Joon who does these beautiful images and color of bodies and body parts and figures, and you can't really tell if it's body painting or tattoos or things that are superimposed or layered, but it was a very inspiring beginning."
The Asian influence showed up in some kimono jackets.
Many of his pieces had asymmetric hemlines, reflecting a top trend for next spring.
But the the most memorable story on his runway was color blocking in contrasting colors of black, white and red.
Some dresses stood out, that were similar to the bias-cut wedding dress that the designer made in 1996 for Carolyn Bessette for her marriage to John F. Kennedy, Jr.
When the designer was asked how this collection related to that famous dress, he said:
SOUNDBITE: Narciso Rodriguez, Fashion Designer, saying (English)
"I always love things that are quite feminine and cut on the bias. I think they fall perfectly and suit a woman's figure, and I've always worked in that direction."
Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week will continue through September 15th.
Elly Park, Reuters, New York.
