Kanye West Spring 2012 Collection Review

Kanye West has finally shown his new women's collection, Dw by Kanye West at Paris Fashion Week, and with mixed emotions, it is unclear of whether or not is as met the expectations.  The answer of this question depends on your actual expectation of whether or not you thought his attempt would be successful, or another cliche celebrity line that lacks the execution and craftsmanship of a true designer collection. I have to say that, well he has the artistic talent to do well in fashion, this collection leaned more to the side of a celebrity collection, with many "almost" attempts that were too close to the aesthetics of the brands he raps about.

The bandage dresses with cut outs were almost Herve Leger; the sequins jacket was almost Balmain and Celine - Lots of almost Mugler, Rick Owens, Alexander Wang...

The fur and heavy fabrics were more appropriate for a Fall collection, and although colors have become seamless through seasons, fabric choices have not.  The fabrics also appear to be very expensive, which helps keep the looks away from a "cheap" description.  The overall finish of the looks were unkept; not sure if the aesthetic was supposed to be ill-fitting, but it didn't translate well on runway photos.  The zipper shorts are hot and on trend, and will be a strong push into market for Dw.

He was sucessful in having Chanel Iman in the show, who's second look (the finale look), was definitely the best look, and a positive way to end the show.  The top appeared heavy, but the overall look was wearable and something unique for the collection.

I still love Kanye West... I think we all do in some small way.  I largely love him for his music, and his contribution to making high fashion cool in the hip hop community.  Kanye helped us tremendously with making fashion and the love of fashion masculine and I remain grateful for that.  However, though I write, breathe, and rock fashion all day; I will NOT be a designer.  He is an artist that can draw, paint, and produce, so he may be able to continue with this and improve. Maybe he will have a better take on menswear, since he can add his own preference into the collection.  His shoe collections have been amazing, so perhaps sticking to that will be his best option.  The fact is, Kanye has alot of money and alot of talent, so this certainly won't be the last collection, especially once he reads other reviews that aren't afraid to give a little tough love. I am quite sure Kanye is going to make a song, and 8 bars of it will about all of us fashion critics who didn't 100% love the collection, but at least I can say that I will have a song written about me.