Accompanied by a vast, starry skyline overlooking the Hudson River, the lit-up buildings seemed dull compared to the luminous models that strutted their way across Christian Cowan’s Spring-Summer 2025 ready-to-wear runway show. The audience was left in a cycle of astonishment, aspiration and a yearning desire to have each one of the British designer’s looks in their wardrobes.
As a UK native, Cowan is now settled in New York, “with his work studio in SoHo and all the trappings of a very Bradshaw lifestyle, Cowan is, by his own admission, living the American dream.” His past collections have featured life-sized fur balls, feathers and lots of sequins, but with SS25, he took a little bit of a different approach.
In a direct statement to The Fieldston News, Cowan explains that the show’s concept was inspired by an early 1970s “Bette Davis picture named Madamme Sin. The less popular picture featured Davis as the ultimate villain evoking a fusion of Cleopatra and Cruella DeVille. We brought this into the modern day era by mixing it all together with current references such as patent leathers, smiley faces and hoop earrings.” Bette Davis’s exaggerated performance as she poses as a criminal who is on the mission to steal a nuclear submarine is reflected by Cowan’s models.
Prior to the show, Cowan also created a storyline about a woman being murdered at a party in Vienna. Half of the women at the party want to escape the murder scene, while the other half are determined to find the murderer. In one interview with CR Fashion, Cowan remarked that “they’re looking for the murderer, and that’s when the runway begins.”
Bette Davis in Madamme Sin Source: IMDb
His opening look, which consisted of a white, lacey satin bra and a ruffled mini skirt paired with clunky, gold bracelets, hoop earrings and a pair of stilettos was no exception to his alluring, yet edgy inspiration. The model’s walk down the runway was enticing as she pointed at and side-eyed spectators as if to say, “What are you looking at me for?” This first encounter with the model poked fun at the stereotypical idea of a fashion show. What one might expect to be a serious, uptight event in this case was a fun yet advanced production.
As the show went on, Cowan enlightened us with sheer, floor-length dresses, leather skirts and satin suits. From a flashlight being shined into the eyes of audience members to a model rushing off in a hurry to another model just confidently striding away, it is safe to say that the models stood on business. The cinematic performances alluded to the murder mystery-esque inspiration.
Source: Vogue
The show’s soundtrack was perfectly curated by beginning with dramatic, slow music such as Ethel Cain’s “Sun Bleached Flies” and gradually transitioned into pop, like Charli xcx’s “Apple.” The music added a sense of youthfulness that fiercely juxtaposed the sophisticated designs. To top it all off, a remix of “Believe by Cher” played throughout the finale. While the models dazzled one last time, everyone was starstruck at the thought of witnessing a murder scene and a fashion show all in one.
Cowan’s show remains one of the most innovative of fashion week. He managed to expertly meld theater and design. Just as he commented in an interview with The Times, “Life is hard […], people contend with real issues. Fashion should be an escape route to expressing themselves and feeling better about themselves,” Cowan’s show certainly felt like a fantasy in the best of ways.
