At first, the title of Alice McCalls’ show, “Some are not insects” was confusing and bizarrely mysterious.  Whereas many designers choose names for their collections that are whimsical and exotic like Diane Von Furstenberg’s Fall 2008 “Foreign Affair” or Erin Fetherston’s Spring 2009 “East of the Sun and West of the Moon,” McCall chose to break with convention and create a collection that was unique and ultimately worthy of its name.  

Insects were indeed the inspiration for the spring collection, providing not only patterns, but also the basis for the garments’ construction and form.  Even the models had a distinctly insect-inspired look with hornet-like dark eyes and hair knotted straight back and off the head like a bee’s stinger.  

The insect theme was interpreted both in literal and abstract forms.  One “June beetle dress,” featured a bug print with cocooned shoulders did indeed bring to mind a beetle without entering into the realm of costume.  On the other side of the spectrum, a “caterpillar vest” with “little locust shorts” merely evoked a sort of nefarious insect without directly imitating its form.  

McCall’s collection went beyond just a simple lesson in entomology—it was also a masterwork of design in which the clothes were infused with a life of their own, full of movement and a dangerously sexy vivacity as the models floated down the runway.  

Adrien Field