Top image: Raf Simons FW17

Last night the annual CFDA Awards were held in New York, recognising and celebrating the best in US fashion.

In light of the awards’ appreciation towards new visionaries, it has been a big moment for Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia of New York-based brand Monse, as they picked up the Swarovski Award for Emerging Talent. As the co-creative directors of Oscar de la Renta, famed for embellished gowns that emphasise the elegance of femininity, Kim and Garcia take a radically different direction with their own brand, Monse, instead favouring easy-going minimalistic silhouettes for women. Launched in 2015, the label has gone from strength to strength – with the creative duo’s reworking of classic styles, they have established themselves as one of the most exciting new names around.

It’s also been a pretty significant year for Raf Simons, having showed his debut collection for Calvin Klein during the FW17 season, to much acclaim. Walking away with both Menswear and Womenswear Designer of the Year, the double victory is an apt one, as Calvin Klein himself previously achieved the historic double win in 1993.

In his acceptance speech, Raf eluded to the role designers can have in today’s world: “If we as creatives can be an inspiration for how the world should look, I think that it’s something we should take as a very important task in our existence.”

Notably, Rick Owens scooped the Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award for his iconic avant-garde collections that have inspired countless designers during his career and Demna Gvasalia picked up the International Award for his work at Balenciaga and his own label, Vetements.

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