It has been a rather dry year for the performing arts, but Ulla Johnson brought art back to The Lincoln Center by debuting her AW21 collection at The David H. Koch Theater. Visible in nearly every garment, there’s an undeniable tribal influence in this collection, perhaps even almost native. Looking back at Ulla Johnson SS21, we saw gravitation toward appreciation for art in New York.
The beginning of this new year shows us a completely different reality from that of last year. We are seeing the light at the end of a global pandemic with new country leadership, and perhaps that’s reflected in Johnson’s new line by presenting a Native American-inspired line. In addition, Johnson boasts that this line’s hand-knit work comes out of New York as opposed to outsourcing.
Ulla Johnson produced a total of 44 looks with colors that draw heavily on an earth tone color palette utilizing shades of brown, green, gold and red. The new collection generally has the same feminine silhouette that Ulla Johnson is known for. The featured outfits fluctuate between paisley and tribal prints and solid colors. The solid color garments rely more on texturizing the apparel and creating patterns with the fabrics themselves, such as braiding, pleating, knitwork, etc. Patterns often resemble that of animal prints, specifically the inclusion of tiger prints in dresses, tops and scarves. Many models wore some variation of strappy leather or suede boots.
The collection features two prominent calf-length coats, one mint green leather coat and one navy wool coat — both coats have oversized sleeves and are cinched right above the waist. One ivory knit turtleneck dress has oversized sleeves with asymmetrically intricate designs down to the ankles, while another gold, black and bronze patterned dress with lace peasant sleeves, matching black lace pointed flat collar and black lace tights. Of the presented ensembles, one of the most eye-catching is an Italian gold-foiled knit sweater and handloom goldenrod yellow and olive green ikat skirt. Another highlight outfit was a gold, black and white floral blouse with a high neckline, balloon sleeves and a matching print scarf. The blouse was paired with a pair of leather dijon loose-fit pants.