Mychal Lopez
On the final day of Fashion Week, 15 minutes before the Chado Ralph Rucci show, the last collection of the fall 2009 season in New York, the Fifth Ave. entrance of Bryant Park is packed with throngs of excited bystanders waiting to catch a glimpse of anonymous fashionistas walking up the steps.
Among the commotion within the tents, the daily activities of Bryant Park go on. Businessmen sit down to a quick lunch from the local ’wichcraft stand. College students concentrate on their reading on the small side tables. There are even children riding a carousel.
The same carousel stands next to a crowded entrance where models, photographers, show organizers, and assistants stand around for a five-minute smoke break.
It is clear that Bryant Park is small. With the white tents cutting through the middle, there is little room left to hold both the fashion crowds and the park goers.
New York Fashion Week at Bryant Park
After 16 years and 32 unique seasons, New York Fashion Week is leaving its small home in Bryant Park and moving to the larger Damrosch Park. Designers, buyers, editors and spectators look forward to a larger space.
A phone interview with the public relations spokesman for IMG Fashion, Zach Eichman, revealed that although organizers have no specific agenda for the future Fashion Week, the space in Damrosch Park will accommodate the numerous shows that are regularly held at Fashion Week.
On Feb 3, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week will move from Bryant Park to Lincoln Center’s Damrosch Park, beginning September 2010.
The agreement on the new venue came out of collaboration between the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), IMG Fashions, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, the New York City Economic Development Corporation and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
The decision was based on Fashion Week’s exponential growth. According to a press release from the Office of the Mayor, when Fashion Week began in 1993, there were only 35 shows presented. Currently, about 70 runway shows are being held per season.
To keep up with the rising number of fashion shows, the CFDA, IMG Fashions, and New York City officials felt it was best to move Fashion Week from the 70,000 square feet at Bryant Park, to the 85,000 square feet at Damrosch Park. The venue switch will allow a 25 percent increase in space. This is an upgrade when it comes to accommodating the many professionals and viewers who flock to Fashion Week.
Main entrance to the tents
Eichman said that Fashion Week requires a blank space that allows organizers “to do as many shows that are physically possible.”
“Damrosch Park has the additional square footage to have more space for designer presentations, where either real models or mannequins can wear the clothes. Instead of just having the traditional runway shows,” Eichman said.
CFDA President Diane von Furstenberg said in a press release that the extra runway space will be perfect to house the “250 designers who show in New York City.”
The possibility of bringing together the fashion community is why fashion-goer Cavanaugh Cutler believes the decision to move to Damrosch Park is positive.
“A lot of the other big name designers, like Marc Jacobs, have left the tents. Maybe this move will bring all the other designers back. You want as many of them as possible under one tent.”
The move to the renowned Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts would also bring further publicity to Fashion Week.
“The proximity and visibility of the Lincoln Center ensures the industry remains at the forefront of worldwide fashion,” said Furstenberg.
A group of Fashion Week attendees stand in front of an entrance
Tania Metti, a friend of Cutler and a fellow fashionista, said, “People are already talking about it. Even our friends who aren’t into fashion are interested in the changes that are happening.”
Since Bryant Park has long been associated with Fashion Week, however, some in the fashion community are sad to see the white tents leave.
Mami Dufka, a freelance photographer who has worked at New York Fashion Week for two seasons, expressed his fondness for Bryant Park and its perks.
“I have had a nice, beautiful time shooting here. Bryant Park has the cleanest toilet in all of Manhattan and the entire park has wireless Internet. Bryant Park in the summer is a beautiful place.”
Korto Momolu, a season 5 finalist on Bravo’s “Project Runway,” reminisced about the unforgettable experience of showing her line at Bryant Park. “It was a beautiful moment that I have played back in my head many times. Bryant Park set the standards for our careers as designers.”
Although Momolu shares the sentiments of Metti and Dufka, she is also excited at the prospect of having a revitalized Fashion Week. “I believe in change and in moving forward. The organizers [of Fashion Week] have a great vision and I have a lot confidence in them. I’m sure it will be just as fabulous as it was in Bryant Park.”
Damrosch Park
Damrosch Park is a sprawling location. At the moment, the white tents of the “SCOPE NY 09” Art Fair are being erected in the middle of the cemented plaza.
Although this will be a drastic switch, the construction-heavy site stands as a testament to how ready this park is to housing Fashion Week.
As Eichman said, “At its core, Fashion Week is an industry event and the tents play a major part in this. Damrosch Park is a flexible place to execute the future vision of Fashion Week.”
A sign marking the end of NY Fashion Week
BEYOND THE GILDING 