Prabal Gurung's fall 2024 collection was crafted out of his grief, with the designer creating silhouettes that offered a balance of warmth and melancholy through tactile fabrics, sculptural silhouettes, and ethereal dresses.
Gurung explained that the collection was due to a loss in his home country of Nepal, which gave him the opportunity to go through his old journals, examining sketches, doodles and dried flowers that he had collected in his early years.
“It was giving in to the pain,” Gurung said backstage. “That was something new for me, but I decided to give in simply because it was the only way I could get through it, which led me back to my father's side of the family, which I had normally stayed away from, to be completely honest, and that led me to these images and all that. “It was so cathartic and so healing, so I brought this to life because it gave me comfort.”
There was a somber feel to the entire collection, reflected through heavy outerwear pieces like a sherpa bomber and an oversized shearling coat, as well as more structured styles, like a tuxedo ensemble paired with a sculptural blouse and a denim jumpsuit Although somber, the pieces conveyed a sense of warmth through enveloping silhouettes and cozy fabrics.
Gurung balanced these heavier looks with her signature feminine styles, such as several handmade fringe pieces and a set of draped organza dresses that closed the show. This gave the collection an ethereal feel that reflected the designer's endlessly optimistic spirit and showed how he can stay true to himself while still delivering new things each season.
“I live in the two dichotomies of East and West,” he said. “This is an ongoing dialogue and that's all I know, and there's a lot to explore.”
