Lauren Santo Domingo, Magda Butrym, Anna Van PattenPhoto: Lucas Possiede
Typically, the unmarked doors of Gosh, New York City’s much talked-about new discotheque, are notoriously hard to gain entry beyond; even for the most dapper of those looking to dance. But on Tuesday night, a stylish crowd of show-goers had priority, as their admittance was courtesy of three buzzy brands: Magda Butrym, Moda Operandi, and Spotify.
Magda Butrym had arrived in town, cutting the ribbon of its first US store—on the frequented Mercer Street in SoHo—and hosting its inaugural NYFW show in Chelsea. With a little help from Moda Operandi, one of the Slavic brand’s longest supporters, and Spotify, the label was properly lionized in true New York fashion.
After slipping past the nondescript entrance on Mulberry Street, guests entered what could be likened to a psychedelic trance. Equal parts eccentric cocktail lounge and aesthetic funhouse, narrow hallways led into sound-proofed rooms. Artfully cracked mirrors on the top floor reflected Lauren Santo Domingo and Anna Van Patten enrapt in conversation, while downstairs Courtney Grow and Avantika perched on gnome-shaped stools, sipping pink rosé fizzes and Lalo tequila cocktails.
Polish references nodding to the brand’s heritage had been woven into the details around the room: vintage paper lace doilies doubled as coasters and napkins bearing Dobry wieczór—good evening in Polish—were slipped under martinis. Old school televisions played Magda Butrym’s latest campaign film on a loop.
It wouldn’t be a Spotify party without meticulously curated music. As Isabella Massenet spun at the DJ booth in the basement, the tunes threaded through speakers carrying the sound up all three levels. Models shook their sculptural dresses and skirts to the beat. “Music and fashion have always been intertwined. At any show, the first impression is always the soundtrack,” Dustee Jenkins, Chief Public Affairs Officer at Spotify, told Vogue. “When we learned this would be Magda Butrym’s first New York Fashion Week, we knew we wanted to be part of bringing that moment to life with Moda. And of course we wanted to host our friends in downtown New York, which is where creative risk-taking lives.”
Creative risk-taking was alive and well, as those clad in the brand’s signature jutting hips and shoulders bumped against one another in an exceptionally welcome fashionable clash. And when attendees finally popped out of the thrill house back onto the Lower Manhattan streets, one sentiment could be loudly heard as they entered their cabs: “Oh my Gosh, what a night.”
