For his spring 2025 New York Fashion Week show, Bad Binch Tong Tong designer Terrence Zhou took the audience to church. For the unveiling of his latest collection, Zhou selected New York’s famous St. Bartholomew’s Church on Manhattan’s East Side for a show that was comparative parts runway and devised theatre.
As guests were ushered into the church as if it was midnight mass, once they were seated, the show began with two models walking down the church aisle dressed in black catsuits encased in sculptural gowns, one red and one black, reminiscent of tulips. The music was ritual-like with the undertones of percussion instruments and humming as Bad Binch Tong Tong began bringing spectators into their world.
What followed was a collection that has the sacred and the secular come together, a theme that presents much of Bad Binch Tong Tong’s designs. For the brand’s spring 2024 collection, fashion pundits described the collection as an alien fantasy meets high fashion, and that concept and aesthetic has been further expanded in the spring 2025 collection.
One look from the spring 2024 collection featured a pink breastplate, a sheer black skirt, and an architectural ring wrapped around it, reminiscent of Saturn’s rings. The Saturn ring motifs were seen throughout several other dresses in the collection. The choice of inspiration from Saturn’s ring was also not incidental, as his show was held on Sept. 7, marking Saturn’s return.
Zhou also gave his take on the little black dress, with a gown that appeared understated at the bodice with a sheer halter top but cascaded into an asymmetrical hem neo-futuristic-style hoop skirt, invoking a black hole. The designer said part of his inspiration for the show was sacred communion, hence his use of the church as a venue. He also wanted the models to have the ability to move through the church in silence as a testament to the space we create for each other. On that note, one of Bad Binch Tong Tong’s gowns featured a collar so oversized, that it would’ve been impossible for anyone to deny the wearer personal space.
There was a subtle theme of the difference between space and embracing Earth’s natural elements, as a floor-length gown with a train adorned with flowers contrasted against the neo-futuristic and planetary designs. The message was clear that there is fashion inspiration in our backyard and beyond the stars.
Images courtesy of Bad Binch Tong Tong
Connection, extraterrestrial inspiration, and the avant-garde marked this collection. What Zhou attempted to literally do and succeeded at was giving the audience a collection that was out of this world.
Kristopher Fraser
Speak Your Mind