Brands I Love: Area NYC

In a world where most of us are scrolling through dashboards on various social media sites several times per day (or at least once), it has become a challenge for brands to cut through the “clutter” and leave a lasting impression. And although I am completely inundated with ads and photographs of fashion lines and editorials daily, one brand manages to catch my attention and stop my scroll dead in its tracks every time: Area NYC.

area-rtw-spring-2016-031 — From the Area NYC spring 2016 Ready-To-Wear collection. One of the reasons I love this brand is their distinctive photography that portrays women as goddesses and power-creatures.

Since it’s a small, up-and-coming brand, you may not have heard of it, but it’s been turning heads in the industry with its 90s aesthetics and trash-to-treasure chic vibes, one that started because Piotrek Panszczyk, one half of Area’s designing duo, borrowed leftover fabrics from the graduate collection of Beckett Fogg, the other half. The two met while studying for their masters at Parsons School of Design and founded a brand together to escape losing themselves in other labels.

The borrowed fabric, an embossed leather, started a tradition that is central to the label’s aesthetic and has been utilized in every line since. Along with fabrics, the duo also recycles trends, resurrecting 90s styles and 70s disco looks, making them cool again.

Area_portrait — Fogg (right) and Panszczyk (left). Photo from the Area NYC website.

Besides the obvious appeal of the trendy, glamorous 70s clubwear-inspired looks (the name “Area” even pays homage to a famous 70s disco club), the brand is always beautifully photographed. Dreamy, sparkling and divine. the models look almost alien, with never-ending limbs and perfectly smooth hair. This aesthetic probably comes from the designers’ belief in portraying women as goddesses and power-creatures, beautiful, otherworldly and overall, in-control.

I think that this power duo has a unique vision and aesthetic and has a great future ahead of them in the industry. I’ll be sure to keep watch, savoring their artistry and photography and maybe pinning a few of their luscious shots to my wall. I’m exited to see what else they churn out in the future!