Uruguayan designer Gabriela Hearst lives in a fashion dichotomy, dividing her time between bustling New York City, where she dresses celebrities like Uma Thurman, Demi Moore and Olivia Culpo, and her family's quiet ranch in Uruguay. Faithful to two major values a long-term perspective and sustainability, the Latinx fashion talent has managed to translate the duality of her bicultural life into gorgeous clothes that every woman wants to have in her closet.
For her fall-winter 2019-2020 collection, Gabriela's inspiration was Bolshoi prima ballerina Maya Plisetskaya, who died in 2015 after having risen to international fame thanks to her incredible talent for ballet. Maya thrived as a dancer despite her father's arrest and execution during the Stalin regime, and her mother's internment in a forced labor camp until 1941.
With this inspiration viewed through her unique fashion lens, Gabriela presented a collection with the juxtaposition of opposites, the sober lines of military influence and the soft beauty of ballet. Scroll through to see 10 standout looks from the collection. Above, on the runway, the Elisabetta dress, with a ribbed skirt which retails for $3,200.
The designer was so fascinated by Plisetskaya’s life that part of the collection was inspired by the clothes the ballerina wore in her life outside ballet, both in the streets of Moscow and in the countryside with her family.
The designer's military-style coats evoke pure power with clean lines and gold hardware. The cashmere Artigas coat ($4,500) has buttons made from brass replicas of Uruguayan coins.
The collection also included beautiful knits, both monochromatic and tricolor, all of them made with recycled cashmere. Her ultra-luxurious leather skirts – this oxblood piece is priced at $67,000 – were created with USA-farmed alligator skins.
The texture and color of this duster vest seemed a nod to the outerwear of the hunters in the South American countryside, where NYC-based Gabriela spends a good part of the year.
A ballet theme was also seen in the leotards that complemented leather skirts and tailored suits.
This double-breasted cashmere Cassatt trench features classic military details like button epaulets. The severity of this coat is broken by the braided gold belt, making it feminine and modern.
Hearst is known for playing with colors and textures. The soft cashmere Guichon vest ($5,700) has a detachable scarf and, even better, is fully reversible!
Ballet references were also infused in subtle ways like the soft white palette in this coat dress and wide-leg pants.
Suits were presented in contrast with feminine flowy skirts, pleated shirtdresses and pastel blouses.
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