Specific references typically inform the direction of Huishan Zhang’s collections; pre-fall 2026 was inspired by a trip to Marrakech, the last place he visited before the pandemic. But the designer’s global clientele are the biggest deciding factor as to what he makes each season. Every look serves a purpose. “There’s a different kind of life in each garment,” he said at a preview.
“We always look at catering for their lifestyles. We know where she’s going to be, her social calendar, for the whole year,” he explained of the “connections” he likes to create between his clothes and the people who wear them. “I talk to my shop manager all the time, we exchange ideas—it gives me an amazing tool to understand my customers. These conversations have become so powerful, because they have more trust in you.”
If his clientele provided the framework for his new silhouettes, which spanned a broad spectrum from fitted tailoring to puff-ball skirts, pencil day dresses to wide-leg dark-denim jeans, then the visual references brought the clothes to life.
As well as reflecting on his own memories of Marrakech, Zhang explored fashion touchpoints, including photographs of Talitha Getty in the Moroccan city and Yves Saint Laurent’s usage of color during his times there. These references steered Zhang’s designs. Whether it was the lurex jacquard seen on an evening coat, the sculptural pink and peach cloqué on a drop-waist dress, or the chiffon-embellished Italian wool, there was more than enough opulence to go around.
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