Audra Danielle Noyes is a young designer, having made her way nearly straight from her studies at Savannah College of Art and Design to Paris, where she cut her teeth at Lanvin and John Galliano. And so her Spring précis was one no doubt informed by her own experiences, which delved deeply into the metamorphosis of a young woman. That idea came to life specifically in the notion of searching for freedom within control. An airy striped cotton silk jacquard, she explained at a preview, nodded to the strings of a marionette; a peplumed top with a cutout toyed with the idea of vulnerability. At times that reference felt slightly labored; you didn’t need multilayered conceits to appreciate Noyes’s winning marriage of American sportswear and demi-couture sensibilities. To wit: a delicate trench in nude and blush with a full skirt, or a grouping made up of panels of various shapes, shades, and opacity. The latter were some of the collection’s loveliest pieces.
With their generous volumes and polished brand of eccentricity, Noyes’s clothes are sure to find fans among women who aren’t afraid of a flounce or a bold sleeve. But that sensibility also gave way to plenty of versatile styles to round out the collection. The designer has a real talent for feminine riffs on suiting. Look no further than her windowpane cropped flares and slouchy blazer for evidence of that. Shirting likewise was an emphasis; tailored poplin pieces served as a counterpart to Noyes’s balloon-sleeved shifts and sculptural skirts. There was a certain innocence here—some of it intentional and some, you imagined, a by-product of the newness of the line that made you keen to see what’s next for Audra.
