Batsheva Spring 2027: Fashion Trolls

by · WWD
Batsheva Spring 2027 Ready-to-Wear CollectionCourtesy of Batsheva

Who said fashion week ended with Thom Browne?

A day after he officially closed NYFW at Hudson Yards, Batsheva Hay kept the party going and took it downtown to Washington Square Park. There, the designer known for eccentric hijinks staged a guerrilla fashion show that was not only “off-calendar,” it was off off-calendar.

At around 1:30 p.m., under the hot afternoon sun, models wearing spiky neon-colored wigs circled the park fountain, much to the surprise and confusion of NYU students in between classes and workers taking lunch.

Hay, who treated all of the models to ice cream cones from a nearby truck afterward, said: “Honestly, the worst part of fashion week for me is the pressure of inviting and event-throwing, like you’re essentially throwing a wedding for your clothes.”

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Coming off what seemed like a never-ending week of wedding-level productions, Hay’s grassroots display was refreshing, a bit renegade and, above all, fun.

So were the clothes. Hay described this season as “the Batsheva version of Norma Kamali,” whose iconic parachute pieces from the mid-’70s and ‘80s were clearly the reference for a black scoopneck tunic worn over a full ruched skirt. Hay also name-dropped Betsey Johnson, Laura Ashley and Vivienne Westwood, saying “those are like my big four.”

The first two could be seen in a peachy baby doll negligee and twee floral patterns, which looked especially great on a tailored skirt set with ruffle trim. The wigs, meanwhile, were all Westwood, recalling the Dame’s own punk hairdo back in her King’s Road days.

Collaborating with hair stylist Brent Lawler, Hay said she didn’t realize that the look they were after resembled trolls, but that it seemed fitting for her commentary on the exclusionary nature of fashion. “We were like, ‘oh, we’re trolling everyone,’” she joked.

Given the lack of security, Hay was asked whether she had concerns about an interruption from PETA after the Cos incident days earlier protesting against wool manufacturing. Her response: “This is all cotton. No sheep were harmed in the making of this show.”