Ralph Lauren takes over Brooklyn

NEW YORK (AP) — He may have been born in the Bronx, but designer Ralph Lauren took over a different New York city borough — Brooklyn — with a sumptuous event that marked his return to NY Fashion Week after four years and brought out stars like Jennifer Lopez, Julianne Moore, Diane Keaton, Mindy Kaling, Gabrielle Union, James Marsden and many others. After crossing the country last year to stage a lavish show at the grand Huntington Library in San Marino, California, Lauren returned to his home base of New York with Friday's show in a cavernous warehouse space at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, transformed into a reimagined artist's loft. He decorated the space with rustic wood and draped canvases, and added glittering chandeliers above. None other than Christy Turlington closed out the runway show of Lauren's Spring 2024 women's collection, the 53-year-old supermodel looking regal in a one-shouldered gown in shiny gold. As is Lauren's way, he combined luxury and casual throughout, showing sleek metallic looks and lacy evening dresses along with his beloved denim, for example a long floral embellished denim skirt, or a jean jacket adorned with rhinestones, feathers and embroidery. Lauren addressed that variety in remarks emailed to The Associated Press, saying the woman he designs for "dresses for who she is on a particular day." This collection, he said, was "inspired by her individuality — all the ways she can express herself through color, texture, contradictions." It was his Lauren's first NY Fashion Week show since 2019. Lopez, Moore, Keaton and Amanda Seyfried sat together in one row, Keaton grooving to the music. Nearby sat actors Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys, near Kaling. Other guests included Ariana DeBose, Rachel Brosnahan, Robin Wright and singer Sheryl Crow. Fellow designer Thom Browne was seated near Vogue editor Anna Wintour. After the fashion show, big wooden barn-like doors opened from the runway "artist's loft" to a huge barnlike room — inspired by Lauren's ranch in Colorado — with long tables laden with pink roses and candles, where guests dined on lobster salad, filet mignon and grilled branzino. Kaling said in an interview that she'd become a fan of the designer through her immigrant parents. "For them, if you wore Ralph Lauren, you had made it, you know, and so that became popularized in my house with Polo Ralph Lauren. So I love being here. It makes me feel really connected to my roots." Brosnahan said she admired Lauren's clothes because they lasted for many years and contributed to sustainability. "Some of my favorite Ralph sweaters are 15, 20 years old," the actor said, "beautiful cashmere sweaters. We're having a conversation about sustainable fashion right now, and .you can have less things if they're beautiful and they last a long time." Model Sofia Richie said she admired the designer's consistency. "Through the years and years ... he's stayed true to his designs and the kind of woman that he dresses," she said.