story by Lisa-Maria Radano
photos by udor
Naeem Kahn takes us from Madrid to Buenos Aires for a Spring 2014 trip to beautiful. Essential motifs of Latin passion- flamenco, the lace mantilla and bold red roses, are vehicles for the journey. A master of embellishment, Kahn gave a profusion of Chantilly lace, floral embroidery, caviar beading, seed pearls, hand-painted fabric, and metallic appliqué, but he balanced all that with simple silhouettes and a mostly red, black, white and gold color scheme. The effect, though fancy, was never excessive.
Setting out, he called upon Frida Kahlo with a splash of red rose embroidery on a peasant blouse with skirt and a trapeze shift. The red roses floated too, on organza or tulle, for a dress and a gown. Then, red and white floral cameo embroidery was visited on caftans, cocktail dresses and gowns. Exuberant multi colored, hand painted fabric vibrated stripy on both mini dresses and full skirted gowns. Flamenco floral embroidery spun on georgette and organza gowns as well as a tap pant with billowy robe. A slinky slew of beaded and lacy columns in nude, white and coral tones plus a loose pair of evening pants were followed by a dash of metallic floral lace and appliqué cocktail dresses. After a passage of jet black beaded evening separates came a run of ornate metallic beaded gold on black gowns, one with a gilet, all of them shouting ole to this fabulous jaunt without a hint of jetlag.
But not yet done, the finale was really a beginning. A demure organza wedding gown with short sleeves, embroidered in roses with a matching chapel length veil signaled the launch of a new line. Mr. Kahn’s brand new bride got an extra turn on the catwalk and lest her pristine mien seemed overly bashful, she carried a big bouquet of blood red roses to suggest the fiery promise of Spanish nights.
