Inside Hermès’ Quintessential New York Runway Show

Last week, Hermès transformed Pier 36 on Manhattan’s Lower East Side into an incredibly chic runway to unveil the second chapter of its Women’s Fall-Winter 2024 collection. For the New York-centric show, Nadège Vanhée, Artistic Director of Women’s Ready-to-Wear, infused some Manhattan culture into the second chapter of the collection that began in Paris in March — ultimately serving as Vanhée’s love letter to the timeless energy of New York City.

Photo Credit: Filippo Fior

The collection’s key theme, Rocabar, harkens back to a tradition of play and cultural collaboration. Originally named after a striped horse rug, or “rug à barres” as a Scottish saddler once called it, Rocabar has evolved over more than a century into an iconic Hermès motif characterized by vibrantly earthy color tones. These tones found their natural counterpoint in the iconic brick and stone façades of New York’s Lower East Side, where the bustling city gazes across the East River toward a radiant sprawl of urban possibilities. Just like New York, the collection came to life as a mosaic of patterns, a melting pot of colors, textures, and codes, capturing the layered history of the city and the people who have made (and continue to make) New York, well New York.

Photo Credit: Filippo Fior

The collection was teeming with different attitudes and looks, from the nautical nod of a double-breasted pea coat over the equestrian trappings of a wool knit sport jacket and a miniskirt quilted like a saddle pad to rosette collar turtlenecks layered under lambskin overalls or a cashmere overshirt added layers of sophistication. Iconic Hermès pieces like horse boots, the rugged lumber jacket, and silk scarves belted around a leather jumpsuit, all contributed to a novel silhouette as eclectic and free as city life itself. The color palette also echoed the diversity of Manhattan intertwined with the sophistication of the Hermès hues with vermilion red, ginger yellow, viridian green.

Photo Credit: Filippo Fior

With New York City as its backdrop, Hermès embodied the infectious energy of the city while also remaining true to its French roots, creating a memorable Manhattan summer evening.