It began with Mark Seliger. Six months ago, designers Laura and Kristopher Brock first met with the American photographer, best known for his intimate black and white celebrity portraiture, to discuss a collaboration. “Knowing we were working with such an iconic photographer, we honed in on the woman, the portrait of the Brock woman,” Laura said. “Less than the clothes, it’s the woman in the clothes and simplifying her wardrobe.”
Thus the couple approached Resort with the intent to strip their latest collection down to bare essentials. That said, the Brock woman’s idea of basics is highly particular. For evening, there was a beautiful floor-length black gown with a corseted bodice and tulle ruffles along its square neckline, further embellished by scrunched up straps that were, Kristopher explained, a grosgrain ribbon tunneled through organza. For day, she might turn to a babydoll top, cut from an ornate floral jacquard and puffed out around the waist by a stiff horsehair peplum. (Horsehair peplum belts also featured as accessories, layered over skirts).
Simpler additions included a new denim style that fit looser and straighter through the leg, as well as more fundamental items like a very roomy cream knit, a three-piece silk pajama set (the third piece being a balconette bra, naturally), a felted wool dressing coat, and a slew of white slips and other pieces meant for a bride. On the whole, the collection displayed a wider range of livable pieces than usual, as if to prove the label can supply more than sumptuous gowns. The Brocks want to dress their woman, wherever she goes.
