Runway Reviews

CARMEN MARC VALVO

For Carmen Marc Valvo, the hothouse is literal. This season, Mr.Valvo took inspiration from his own garden, producing a collection in which nearly every outfit incorporated some manner of flower -- peonies, hibiscus, and cabbage roses. Mr. Valvo's specialty is evening wear, and his chiffon fantasies owe a debt to ladies-who-lunch clothiers such as Oscar de la Renta and Carolina Herrera, with a bit of Mediterranean flash thrown in for good measure (think Versace or Cavalli). The mixture wasn't always successful. Mr.Valvo's long, diaphanous ground-skimming gowns were often gorgeous. But when he tried to excite, popping a leather bustier or a biker jacket on top of a cocktail dress, it felt forced. Mr.Valvo's historical influences, which ranged from flapper dresses to empire waistlines, also failed to gel. But a pretty frock -- of which Mr.Valvo provided plenty -- is still a pretty frock.

CHADO RALPH RUCCI

Ralph Rucci, one of the few Americans ever to have been invited to show couture in Paris with the big daddies, creates sumptuous clothes that evoke a lost era of refinement and luxury. Just the barest hint of sexiness sneaks through Mr. RucciÕs layers of double-faced wool, silk georgette, and alligator. His modernist vision, with its three-quarter-length sleeves and tunic waistlines, evokes Balenciaga as well as a high-life 1960s elegance.

But Mr. Rucci is sui generis, having developed his own self-referential vocabulary. By bringing in Japanese Buddhist influences (some of the models wore necklaces with empty birdcage pendants) and throwing oversized, Franz Kline brush strokes or Rorschach splashes on otherwise almost entirely monochrome outfits, the designer brings a certain high-mindedness to the fashion landscape. Indeed, with its trance music and low lighting, Mr. RucciÕs runway presentation almost felt more like a glamorous form of Zen meditation than a fashion show. In spite of the young models he enlisted this season, the criticism can still be levied against the designer that his clothes look old. Mr. RucciÕs ideal client is a cosseted one; in other words, the pockets in her black wool Mao jacket had better be deep.