Eckhaus Latta RTW Spring 2022

“We don’t start from a traditional inspiration point,“ said Mike Eckhaus, with a laugh. “It’s really about where we are at the time and how we feel.” Well, considering where we all are, after over a year and half of a pandemic with life cautiously reopening, the bicoastal duo was feeling what many are: freedom. Eckhaus explained that they “wanted to feel sexy and confident and free again.”

There was an erotic playfulness to the clothes, with exposed breasts, open snaps racing up legs of a dress so high that a hint of a black thong was exposed, and torsos laid bare with sheer pieces across all genders. This is a new normal, and after a time looking inward, why not look to the most human of things: the body.

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Slinky knits, sleek dresses with cutouts, laser-cut black pants held together by a boatload of snaps, a green knit top cut so high as to graze the bottom of a model’s breast paired with matching drawstring wide-legged knit pant: There was a real conversation between garment and body happening here.

The color palette went from inky gray on separates, sunset orange on leather pants and bra tops — a big trend this week, so far— ending with a cleansing white and cream section, closing with an ankle-length white pant with a sheer lingerie-like cardigan, both coquettish and strong.

And then the shoes, yes the shoes! White simple ballet slip-ons, black tough ankle boots and brightly colored rope sandals, after working on a few collaborations they are finally dipping a toe into their own shoe offering.

“It’s the beginning of something new for us,” Zoe Latta said. ”We’ve had a real learning process and growth over the last 10 years, and now this is the beginning of our world of shoes.”

Launch Gallery: Eckhaus Latta RTW Spring 2022

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