By Mari Sato and Dakota Rose
In a space between rebellion and conformity lives the design studio AREA. The woman-directed brand embraces a playful pop-culture forward design approach and has become increasingly popular for using innovative embellishments, textiles, and fashion jewelry. This past week, the American design label showed its Fall/Winter 24 collection at New York Fashion Week. The collection, in partnership with Tinder, explores themes of identity, self-expression, and womanhood all while creating a cohesive show that subverts traditional design. In this short runway reaction series, Mari Sato and Dakota Rose delve into our reactions to show motifs and offer insights into the show’s impact on fashion and culture.
Eyes have been a recurring theme for AREA. Last season AREA presented a collection inspired by cartoon eyes that utilized negative space, textures, and even googly eyes. This season AREA expanded on the motif using hardware; inspired by name plates, dog tags, and door plaques. Eyes were seen in little details such as buttons, pendants, and embellishments but also as the main part of a look. My favorite use of this theme was in Look 20, which showcases a mock neck tank and hot pants adorned with eye embellishments and complementing chunky jewelry. Unlike the other eyes in the collection, these lacked pupils and instead featured a fingerprint-like pattern reinforcing AREA’s exploration of identity. Historically, eyes have been a symbol of the gateway to the soul; in this collection, I view the use of eyes as an exploration of the art of being seen versus the art of anonymity. Given the show’s other themes, the designs suggest an exploration of womanhood as a dance between self-perception and how others perceive us. Eyes highlight the tension women face navigating personal identity against the societal expectations and perceptions imposed upon them. I hope eyes will continue to be used as a lens for exploring introspection and extrospection in a modern fashion landscape.
AREA’s A/W 2024 collection stayed true to the brand, utilizing a variety of textures, colors, and silhouettes throughout the collection. A major motif throughout the collection was hands. Placed strategically in some pieces, while being more sporadic in others, the hands became a connecting line for the collection that spoke to female empowerment and bringing awareness to injustice. Combined with looks directly inspired by eighties power dressing, AREA aims to explore “the tension between conformity and rebellion” (area.nyc) in this new collection. Geometrical silhouettes dominate parts of the show – a direct contrast to the fitted pieces that incorporate the hand motif. Look 38 of the line enfolds the wearer’s body in black hand-shaped cutouts that make up the dress, leaving much of her skin exposed. This piece specifically, epitomizes “bans off our bodies” theme of the show and speaks volumes to the message being sent through this collection. Additionally, Look 14 is the result of a collaboration between the popular dating app, Tinder, and AREA. The shirt features red handprints that sit where the wearer’s hips are, facing down suggestively. In the show, this piece was styled tucked in to suggest the fingers reach beyond the waistband and was paired with a black embellished skippers cap. The contrast in the messages sent here – power, perception, and exploitation. On pieces including the “Bans off Our Bodies” t-shirt, the handprints are red, resembling the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women emblem. Acknowledging the challenges faced by women with the incorporation of Hands makes the other pieces that play off of uniforms and authority all the more powerful. AREA’s show sends a message of recognizing challenges and overcoming them.
AREA’s 10th anniversary collection will go down as the intersection between artisanal craftsmanship, female empowerment, and social critique. This collection has made a powerful statement in fashion and advocacy, exemplified by a $25,000 donation to Planned Parenthood. AREA epitomizes the way in which fashion is truly art and, as a brand, is actively using its platform to make invaluable social commentary. This collection powerfully reaffirms the brand’s mission to explore “perceptions of femininity and beauty,” solidifying the brand’s place as an influential voice in fashion.
