Marc Jacobs goes big on stripes

NEW YORK, U.S.A. – Marc Jacobs kicked romanticism to the curb with a bold New York fashion week show dominated by hypnotizing stripes and delivered at crackerjack speed.

Celebrities including singer-designer Kelly Osbourne and Latino heart throb Ricky Martin joined the crowd Monday, September 10, at the Lexington Armory, where Jacobs sent his models out to the beat of “Copped It” by British punk group The Fall.

Watch backstage clips, interviews and the Marc Jacobs runway show here:

“Very brutal, very sexy, very straightforward, no romance, no emotion, just real power and force and simplicity,” is how Jacobs described his collection, a radical contrast from the ethereal vibe of many other New York shows.

Down the triangular runway came a barcode T-shirt, then a striped lab coat, then a striped ensemble with matching handbag, with a cameo T-shirt appearance by Mickey Mouse thrown in for good measure.

Watch the quirky Marc by Marc Jacobs show here:

Later on, the straight and wide stripes gave way to curvy op-art graphics reminiscent of an LSD trip — and indeed, Jacobs cited 1960s pop icon and Andy Warhol muse Edie Sedgwick as an inspiration.

Jacobs, who famously opened a 2007 show two hours late, quipped that Monday’s show may have been his fastest ever.

“My dream is to have a show that lasts one minute,” he said. “I’d love to have it over before everybody sees it.”

Jacobs returned Tuesday with his Marc by Marc Jacobs diffusion line before heading off to Paris to show his latest Louis Vuitton creations. – Prune Perromat and Robert MacPherson, Agence France-Presse