Alexander Wang - Spring/Summer 2011

The Little Prince of New York Fashion seems to have arrived at a turning point in his development. With his first boutique opening this fall, he delivered a collection in which deconstruction continued to reign, but where calf-brushing skirts replaced his previous sexy lengths - at the risk of disappointing his fans who have become addicted to their fetish designer's micro shorts.

Whereas we have become used to a color palette of darker tints and an urban feel, this season, there is hardly any black at all. For summer 2011, Wang said he wanted purity, optimism and freshness, which he translated into virginal, monochromatic looks from the very first runway entrance.

Although he may have left behind him colors like carbon, aubergine, and charcoal used in his preceding collection, he continues to develop his working knowledge of deconstruction that he initiated last season.

Integrating itself into the construction site lexicon (reflecting his life at the moment -- between building his boutique, enlarging his studio and decorating his new apartment), next summer's wardrobe has elements of construction uniforms with wide straps and loose overalls (matched here with full-cut jumpsuits or mid-length skirts), and the white of a painter's uniform; not to mention the models' hair styles which showed nothing more than a trace of white paint in the hair.

Wang's vision of next summer may be full of references to the street wear style that had made him so famous (wide pants cinched with a padded belt, tummy pockets like those in sweatshirts, cropped jean jackets, biker jackets revisited, and loose knits), yet we can tell that the designer is hesitating between accentuating the sporty look of his models and injecting them with the neo allure inspired by the Belgian school.

It must be said that the mix of genres is strange, including Tyvek jackets (reminding us of insulation material), to short pants covered with silver stains, to chiffon, mid-calf length dresses à la Rodarte, to pistachio full skirts, and Dries Van Noten-esque sienna cross-over dresses.

In the end, it is unclear which direction Alexander Wang will take. What is clear is that this collection marks the beginning of a new era - it remains to be seen if it will be as prosperous as the first.

Click here to see the whole collection: http://www.style.com/S2011RTW-AWANG