Christopher Kane is fashion's master of the remix, giving old ideas a new spin, although with his new Pre-Fall collection the most striking idea was only as old as his Fall '14 collection. That show's stunning finale, leaves of organza fluttering like the pages in a book, was revisited here in dresses with cutouts folded back like sheets of paper. Given that the exterior was black, the interior pink lent the effect the visceral impact of a fashion autopsy. Kane was enchanted by such a disturbing notion.
Also coming around again were the floral embroidery on patent leather (Fall '10) and the cute little stickers (Spring '12) applied to oversize cashmere coats in pink and navy. The body-consciousness with which Kane made his name reemerged in high-stretch bandage dresses, in figure-hugging knits limned with zippers, and in wide straps of black patent leather that bound jackets and frocks. (Once upon a time, he tried for the same look with gaffer tape. Guess everything gets bigger with success.)
What really stood out was how canny Kane is at commercializing his own creativity. Wearability is his mantra with his pre-collections, which means they present themselves as more linear, maybe more coherent than his main lines. Even so, there was no sense of holding back with these clothes. Flourishes of "mechanical Art Nouveau," bonded with leather and vinyl, yoked and collared dresses in silvery lace lamé. A black patent-leather biker jacket exploded with a curly sheepskin lining. And then there were the more subtle touches. Look closely at a decorative intarsia and it was more a weed than a precious flower. Further testament to Kane's remix mastery: Nothing was quite what it seemed.
