Baja East Spring 2017 - Runway Review

Welcome to the jungle! In a lineup that seemed destined to be serenaded by Guns N’ Roses, Scott Studenberg and John Targon’s spring Baja East show—held in a Financial District parking garage, of all places—was an acid trip of the very best kind. Pink and blue neon lights flashed as rap music blared as the designers sent out a “gritty and dirty” collection (their words, not mine).

Models sporting wet hair and smoky eyes walked out in their too-cool-for-school leafy palm-printed garments, which actually looked pretty terrific as separates and swimwear—the latter a new category for the brand. Ironically, the collection’s tropical influence was inspired by a scene in the animated film “Minions,” and those tiny yellow creatures were splashed across a handful of items—not to mention a banana print. The soft jackets, worn with cream trousers with a tuxedo stripe of bugle-beaded fringe, were fantastic, as were the duo’s familiar—and shapely—floor-skimming dresses in python.