Saturday 12 September 2009 saw Karen Walker’s 7th showing at New York Fashion Week.
The Spring / Summer 2010 collection, entitled ‘The Village’, has as its central
inspiration the cult 1960’s television show The Prisoner.

Karen says: “We’ve been re-watching The Prisoner and have always loved the look it has
– a 60’s take on Edwardiana seaside – all navy blazers, tan chinos and stripy t-shirts.
Even more so though we love its central idea of a seaside holiday resort that’s
actually a prison for retired spies.”

This inspiration and its throwing together of extremes is the perfect starting point
for a Karen Walker range. The Prisoner’s mood is clear in the collection’s many
shrunken navy blazers, skinny cream, navy and tan ankle breezers and cream and navy
stripe jersey tees.

The navy and cream colour palette extends into a story of navy cotton dresses, shirts
and skirts with, in a nod to the 60’s take on Edwardiana seaside, frill detailing,
often with cream trim.

The Karen Walker signature of throwing opposites together is seen beyond the holiday
resort / prison inspiration in many places including, as in the T.V. show, the
contrasting of the controlled and the psychedelic; here in the form of contrasting the
classical navy and cream against a bright green psychedelic floral.

The Village - S/S 2010

Karen says: “The Prisoner often played with the idea of mind altering drugs and
psychedelia. It was a 60’s show after all. We liked the idea of the trippy elements
playing off against the controlled façade in the show as well as in the collection.”
Also contrasting against the classical navy, tan and cream cottons are high tech parka
nylons in yellow, teal and navy.

Karen Walker’s signature fabric prints are present this season as ever, this time
continuing the seaside mood with navy, red, white and turquoise bunting and oversized
polka dots. There’s also navy and white in many different prints - stripes, polka dots
big and small, and a recreated 30’s seagull print.

Denim is seen in indigo boyfriend cut, worn with this season’s cropped tan trench, and
skinny and cropped in indigo and white. Cashmere silk knits in grey and scarlet are
also key.

Hats are once again a strong part of the collection. This season there are navy,
natural and bright yellow straw bucket hats and sloppy navy cricket hats.
Next season’s Karen Walker Eyewear also makes its debut.

Shoes this season are in collaboration with hip shoe brand, Pointer who’s classic
boat shoes were reworked in Walker’s own colour palette. These shoes, as the first of
the Pointer for Karen Walker collaboration, will be sold as part of the Karen Walker
collection this season.

Heels were once again by British shoe designer Jonathan Kelsey who, in addition to his
eponymous line, designs for Mulberry and Pucci and has, prior to launching his own
line, designed for Cacharel and Jimmy Choo.

The collection was styled by Karen’s long term collaborator, New York based stylist
Heathermary Jackson. This is Heather and Karen’s 16th season working together.
Hair director on the collection was Rolando Beauchamp for Bumble and Bumble. This
is Rolando’s third season on the Karen Walker team. He’s also worked with Terry
Richardson, Patrick Demarchelier and Ellen von Unwerth.

Make up director was Jenna Menard for Shiseido. Her work has appeared in the best
publications including U.S. Vogue, Vanity Fair and U.S. Elle and she’s worked with many
of the world’s greatest photographers including Annie Lebowitz and Arthur Elgort.
This season’s models included the superb Hyoni Kang, Kelli Lumi, Rachel Clark,
Charlotte Hoyer, Mathilde Frachon, Angelika Kocheva and Skye Stracke who, between
them, have walked the runway for every major designer including Marc Jacobs, Anne
Demeulemeester, Christian Dior, Lanvin, Hermès, Louis Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent,
Marni, Junya Watanabe, Chanel and Chanel Couture. They’ve been in the pages of every
important fashion magazine including V, Harper’s Bazaar, i-D, and Paris and Italian
Vogues and the face of brands including Lacoste, Benetton, D & G, Louis Vuitton,
DKNY and Vivienne Westwood.

The media at this season’s showing included style.com, Nylon, Elle, Lucky, Teen Vogue,
WWD, Harper’s Bazaar and Marie Claire.

Reviews have been universally excellent. Highlights of quotes to date are listed below.
With its funny printed pants, sailor stripes, and boat shoes, Karen Walker’s Spring
collection initially read “Nantucket.” But the designer’s inspiration actually came
from an oceanfront an ocean away. Walker has been viewing episodes of the cult sixties
British television show The Prisoner, which details the life of an Edwardian seaside
resort that’s in fact a jail for retired spies. Ah, now that’s a richer source than a
New England island that’s a sanctuary for billionaires. From it, Walker extracted not
only her raw materials—sailor stripes, navy blazers, the Edwardian frill, and jaunty
chinos—but also the idea of opposing forces (as in holiday destination as place of
incarceration).

Hence Walker’s quiet subversion of classics: the outré gold zips on a cropped navy
trench, for example, or the unexpected bright hues of the boat shoes paired with nearly
every look (a new collaboration with cool Brit brand Pointer). And while some of her
prints—like a lovely pennant version on jersey dresses and bags—played directly to the
seaside theme, she countered the nauticalia with a fab trippy sixties pattern and a
China blue toile.

The effect of all of the above? Signature Walker, mixed and matched with a sure hand, a
bit mad yet wholly infectious. After last season’s polished look, this was a return to
a more girlish silhouette, but there was certainly enough here to lock in the growing
number of Walkerites of all ages.
STYLE.COM - Meenal Mistry