The most committed designers won’t let the prospect of labor delay their shows. And in the case of Danish designer Stine Goya, that was labor literally—the very pregnant designer was due the same day as her collection was to debut. But Goya’s collection marched on as scheduled (her baby, for what it’s worth, didn’t make an appearance) and secured her spot as the standout of the season.
The designer’s relaxed, feminine forms are widely flattering, but like the seventies Danish designer Margit Brandt, Goya is her own best model. Maybe that’s why all the models in her show were styled with her own signature cat-eye makeup and coif—long, strawberry blond locks with blunt-cut bangs. The collection took hot-air ballooning for its theme, emphasizing voluminous, beaded frocks, printed silk dresses, draped trousers in pretty pastels and sherbet shades. And Goya, a former Chanel model herself, took her runway bow in a peach and white form-fitting dress with a balloon-sized belly.
The rest of Copenhagen fashion week was somewhat less buoyant, since many of the city’s most artistically innovative designers were M.I.A. Vilsbøl de Arce and Spon Diogo were noticeably absent from the schedule, which was heavy on commercial labels such as Munthe plus Simonsen, Malene Birger, and Hugo Boss. But the refreshingly clean minimalist Bruuns Bazaar collection, Henrik Vibskov’s Dadaist presentation on a circular stage set rotated by costumed stagehands, and Anne Sofie Madsen’s magnificent collection of dresses with sculptural frills and prints inspired by Piero Fornasetti maintained Copenhagen’s strong creative integrity as the fashion showcase for future generations of stylish Danes.
—Ana Finel Honigman
Photos: Courtesy of Copenhagen Fashion Week
