First-timers Geova and Lourdes and Oliver Christian Herold presented three compelling collections at New York, recalls Phillip D. Johnson

GEOVA PHOTOGRAPHED BY RICHARD SPIEGEL

HE THREE young designers below, in very individualistic ways, managed to leave their mark—however small—on New York Fashion Week fall 2003. Two of them, Geova and Lourdes, are first-time participants while Oliver Christian Herold returns to the controlled madness that is Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week.
   In terms of creating an immediate impact, Patricia Fistes-Adams of Lourdes is the frontrunner of the three. A woman whose childhood was influenced by the theatre and travelling to New York City and Europe to attend theatrical and musical events, Ms Fistes-Adams was inspired by the costumes she saw and followed up by attending (and graduating from) the Pratt Institute in New York. Some of her early jobs as a designer include working with Asia’s Pitoy Moreno and as part of Disney’s The Lion King theatrical productions. She has, over the years, been the recipient of numerous national and international design awards.
   Ms Fistes-Adams does not believe in a ‘canned definition of beauty’. Instead, she desires that her clothing appeal to women through the ‘enactment of fantasy, power, luxury, class, elegance, tradition and integrity.’ For her début at Bryant Park, she sent out wearable, strong pieces infused with her inbred theatricality. Although it was not a home run, this collection was filled with seeds of design insight that bears well for her future. Working primarily in black and white, her designs has the usual bells and whistles associated with evening­wear: fishtail detailing, ruffling on necklines, the mixture of day (beaded tank tops) with evening (ball gown skirts with tulle underlay), zig-zag hemlines, extended sleeves and cut-outs. I especially liked her very dramatic black ruffled collar gown with fishtail detailing. It was a neat way of mixing the time periods because the ruffled collar was very Victorian while the fishtail hemline was reminiscent of the early 1900s. She also showed a black chiffon fitted short coat over a tan top and a pencil skirt that was quite beautiful.

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TOP ROW AND CENTRE ROW, LEFT: Oliver Christian Herold, graduating to the Upper East Side in style. OTHER PHOTOGRAPHS: Geova fall 2003.