New York Fashion Week: what to expect from the spring/summer shows

With a return to live audiences, the Big Apple's approach paves the way for other fashion events

Bella Hadid presents a creation from the Oscar de la Renta autumn/winter 2020 collection during New York Fashion Week in February 2020. Photo: Reuters

New York Fashion Week is set to return on Wednesday, taking place largely in front of a live audience.

Following a digital-only approach for the past two seasons, the return of in-person shows marks the resumption of a near-normal schedule for the first time since the onset of the pandemic.

Hailed as the return of fashion weeks, New York kicks off the biannual, four-week diary that rotates through London and Milan before culminating in Paris.

Rodarte, showcasing its autumn/winter 2020 here, is returning to the runway for New York Fashion Week spring/summer 2022. AFP

As the first of the four fashion weeks, it is being viewed as a sign of what to expect from the others, making the return to being held in front of an audience for the first time since February 2020 an important move.

As part of ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, however, all those attending in person will have to provide proof of being fully vaccinated against the virus.

To help celebrate the event, the week will conclude with the Met Gala for the first time, postponed from its normal slot in May.

A glittering and star-studded annual event, the gala is a celebration of all things fashion and, somewhat fittingly, this year's theme is In America: a Lexicon of Fashion.

Intended as a high-profile name check for the best of American fashion, the event will be co-hosted by singer Billie Eilish, actor Timothee Chalamet, tennis player Naomi Osaka, and poet and activist Amanda Gorman.

In addition to the Met Gala, New York Fashion Week will feature the return of some key names to the diary.

Thom Browne, who has shown in Paris since 2017, is making a triumphant comeback, as is the label Rodarte. The week will also welcome some new names to the circuit, including Peter Do, the American-Vietnamese minimalist collective that is already stocked at the likes of Net-a-Porter and Dover Street Market.

Models present creations from the Prabal Gurung spring/summer 2018 show during New York Fashion Week in September 2017. Reuters

Other names taking part include Proenza Schouler, Prabal Gurung, Batsheva, Naeem Khan, Coach and Chloe's new creative director, Gabriela Hearst.

Marc Jacobs, who traditionally used to close New York, showed his spring/summer 2022 collection in June, with the finale slot now taken by Tom Ford.

New York Fashion Week will run from Wednesday to Sunday, September 8 to 12