L.A. Fashion Week Fall '08: Juuml;nker

In recent years, Juuml;nker has shown its upscale and apocalyptic fashions in Hollywood nightclubs and deserted downtown alleys. For its recent Los Angeles Fashion Week show, the label went to an art gallery in Beverly Hills.

The March 13 show was held at the David Lawrence Gallery, where gallery owner David Lawrence was hosting an exhibition of illustrations and paintings by “Fritz the Cat” creator R. Crumb.

Held in partnership with the Symbolic Gallery, the exhibition provided a quip-inducing backdrop for the pre-show party, where Juuml;nker fans gathered to take in the prurient and political artwork on the walls.

This season, Juuml;nker designers Tod Waters and Giuliana Mayo picked up on the green movement—in their own anarchic style. The two introduced a recycled denim line described on the run sheet as “green without all that hippy dippy organic bullshit.” Made from vintage Levi’s, the jeans, jackets and vests had Juuml;nker’s second-skin fit and were embellished with zippers, studs and corset lacing. The show also included several examples of Juuml;nker staples: patched and printed leather jackets were distressed to rock-star perfection, and leather skins were layered into micro minis. New this season were liquid knits that were dip-dyed and drapey. A pregnant model was dramatic in a purple tee dress with asymmetrical lacing and an up-to-there side slit. And Juuml;nker’s oversized, slouchy bags in leather and army-surplus canvas—some with chain handles—completed the look.—Alison A. Nieder