(Photo Credit: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images for NYFW: The Shows)
Harley Quinn inspired runway show by Christian Siriano at NYFW
For his Fall 2020 runway show at New York Fashion Week, Christian Siriano draws inspiration from the new Warner Bros. film “Birds of Prey” and the main character from the DC Comics Batman universe, Harley Quinn. The new film focuses on Harley Quinn post-breakup with the iconic Batman villain, Joker, empowering herself and other dynamic females, making for the perfect inspiration for a women’s collection.
Warner Bros. started collaborating with Siriano a few months ago when Ashley Longshore and Siriano filmed a commercial for “Birds of Prey” for an episode of “Project Runway.” This gave the idea for Warner Bros. to approach Siriano to collaborate for his New York Fashion Week runway show and Siriano loved the collaboration idea. The wardrobe wasn’t the only thing inspired by Harley Quinn, they also incorporated her hairstyle and makeup for the models.
For the venue, they incorporated actual set pieces that can be seen in the film along with the new songs featured in the film. Siriano’s Fall 2020 collection was inspired by a “dark, mysterious evening” vibe and the origins of “a really cool, dark, old funhouse.”
The collection pieces are mostly black for refined formal pieces that offer a flair of dramatics with embellishments and a variety of fabric textures. Siriano made a collection with pieces for all occasions for a night out on the town or walking the red carpet.
The director, Cathy Yan, and costume designer, Erin Benach, of “Birds of Prey” sat in the front row which Siriano admitted was a different runway experience than what he’s used to. Siriano also stressed the importance of getting sponsorship for a runway show saying, “Fashion is in a really rough time. It’s really expensive.” He goes onto explain that retail is changing and people aren’t shopping the same as they used to and say, “To survive designers really are looking for something to help us do what we need to do.”
Coco Rocha walked the pink runway and “SNL” actor Leslie Jones hyped up Rocha as she worked the runway which made the runway show go viral on social media. The collection featured 68 versatile looks and is one of Siriano’s biggest, most versatile collection to date.
