New York Fashion Week spring-summer 2013: Alexander Wang

NEW YORK -- Alexander Wang, New York Fashion Week’s reigning rock star, showed his spring-summer 2013 collection Saturday afternoon. And there was more than one unforgettable runway moment.

The inspiration: Urban uniforms turned animalistic.

Photos: NYFW Week celebrity sightings

The look: Fierce but controlled. Leather is already everywhere for fall, but Wang gave it a new lease on life for spring. It was all about boxy silhouettes with surgical slashes revealing the body and bringing to mind animal markings. (In a twist on the now-ubiquitous color-blocking, Wang called the technique “leather-blocking.�) Leather jackets, T-shirts and shift dresses had cut-outs sutured together with barely visible fish line. There were also crisp patch pocket shirts over white Bermuda shorts, zip-front jackets and dresses, rubberized twill utility parkas, sculpted metallic cable neck halters, spongy knits and knee-high sandal-boots, which are starting to look like a big trend. Then, for a spectacular finale, there was a black light effect that literally made models glow in the dark.

The scene: This season’s biggest paparazzi moment so far was on the runway, not off. Model Liberty Ross, who was caught by surprise like everyone else by director Rupert Sanders’ fling with Kristen Stewart, strutted her stuff and looked darn good doing it.

The verdict: Brilliant. All the fantasy required of a great fashion show, but with wearable (and affordable) clothes.

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