“Staging our Pre-Fall show in Shanghai is a big moment for Coach and for me personally. Shanghai is one of the most vibrant, youthful and contemporary cities I have ever visited.” — Coach’s Creative Director Stuart Vevers
Transporting Stuart Vever’s Pre-Fall 2019 collection thousands of miles from New York City to Shanghai isn’t the only thing Coach did to commemorate its 15th year in China— the edgy chic American brand also collaborated with four top Chinese creatives to give its well-loved mascot, Rexy the dinosaur, a little makeover for the collection. The four creative souls were graphic artist, Guang Yu; contemporary ink painter and abstract artist, Zhu Jingyi; sculptor Sui Jianguo; and twin music collectives Tom and Arthur Bray, also known as Yeti Out.
The Main Event
Coach Lights Up Shanghai was the first runway show to be held in China, at the West Bund Art Center, Shanghai. Themed “Bright Lights, Big City”, the show was a culmination of talent and inspiration from two of the world’s most unique and vibrant cities; Shanghai and New York. The idea was to create a neon spectacular night that best represented both cities. The brand recreated a supersize version of a New York City street, complete with the whole works— two-lane road, blinking traffic lights, restaurant signages, and vintage cars— against iconic Coach motifs in the backdrop. Even a few of his favorite New York models were flown in to walk the runway alongside the models from China, including Lexi Boling, Adesuwa Aighewi, Kiki Willems, and Indira Scott.
The Collection
As for the actual collection, the marrying of the two cities was a little more subtle. Instead, the universally flattering collection channeled the glamorous world of ‘rock & roll’ elegance infused with Alice Cooper’s bold early 1970s aesthetic. Stuart worked with rich colors and fun textures. Silhouettes were elongated and tall, paired with fun, patchwork shoes; we saw exaggerated handkerchief hems on floral dresses and lightly draped, soft leather and suede jackets, along with— our favorites— brightly-colored, soft shearling “chubby” jackets and “love-worn” mohair sweaters with vibrant abstract paintings. And of course, Coach’s iconic prairie dresses made the cut for this collection.
The beloved Dreamer bag evolved with a dressed-up “kisslock” closure, lavish crafted patchwork over Coach’s Signature pattern. At the heart of the collection are the playful Rexy-inspired artwork by local creatives. Jianguo is well-known to create oversized sculptures in preserving Chinese culture as part of his design inspiration. For this particular collaboration, he created an image of Rexy reimagined in more of a vintage aesthetic. Music collective YETI OUT incorporated Rexy into their signature smiley face motif. Ink painter and abstract artist, Zhu Jingyi designed Rexy in the best way he knew how— in ink art! Talented graphic artist, Guang Yu, painted Rexy in a free-spirited, graffiti style print, with her teeth (yes, Rexy is a her!) out.
View the entire collection of the collaboration here:
The A-List Guests
The show was a visual extravaganza and also read like a Who’s Who on the Walk of Fame. Seated along with International A-listers like Chloe Grace Moretz, Japanese actress, model Kiko Mizuhara, and Ji Soo and Rosé of BLACKPINK, were the iconic Malaysian couple, actress and singer Nur Fazura and her celebrity hubby, Fattah Amin. The guests were also present at the after party, swinging away to DJ mixes created by the brand’s ambassador Timmy Xu, collaborator Thomas Bray of YETI Out and DJ Dazzy.
Below are the full looks for Coach’s Pre-Fall 2019 collection:
Images courtesy of COACH.
