Designer Decoding: Cesar Galindo

Hey Everyone!!!

It has been a very long time since I posted a segment in my extensive “Designer Decoding” series, and since New York Fashion Week is only five weeks away, I feel that now is the perfect time to reinvigorate the series. For today’s installment of Designer Decoding, I am introducing a designer that I not only admire due to his great talent, but whose work I had the great pleasure of photographing during his Fall/Winter 2014 collection for my blog. Today, I shall be highlighting the work of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week veteran and the current CZAR of fashion, Cesar Galindo.

Photo can be found here

Cesar Galindo has a very interesting origin for his designing background. Galindo, born in Houston, Texas and the youngest of eleven children, began his extensive career in fashion through costume designing. His specialty included corsets and other Victorian period costumes for both the Miami City Ballet and the Houston Grand Opera. Galindo’s designs are distinguishable through his use of “femininity, social occasion dresses, architecturally draped hems and necklines and a rich color palette”.

Photos can be found here

The photo above comes from the most recent Spring/Summer collection, and presents a brilliant utilization of silk fabric and bold colors. This collection combined ready-to-wear staples and evening wear, as it belongs to his CZAR line. The first gown, with is bright red shade and deep blue, triangular center shows Galindo’s great talent for working with pleats. The third look, a monochromatic gradient of blue, shows Galindo’s ultimate technique for draping. Finally, the center look shows that Galindo can still create simple silhouettes that show off a woman’s natural beauty.

Photos can be found here 

The photo above comes from the Fall/Winter 2014 collection, a presentation that I had the greatest honor of attending (the post can be found here). This collection also belonged to the Czar brand, and consisted of ready-to-wear pieces along with semi-formal wear. Now, due to the fact that I have an entire post dedicated to the this particular collection, I will not go into heavy detail about the looks. However, what I can say is that Galindo was able to combine soft fabrics, such as silk and chiffon, along with heavier materials, such as furs and leather, to create a collection of cohesive outfits. The collection also showed Galindo’s talent for creating printed works, particularly with the gowns and graphic jeans.

Photo can be found here

The following three looks are my personal favorites for his past collections. The first look, a gold and black romper paired with golden sandals, appeared in his spring 2013 collection. I am particularly impressed by the perfect fit along with the use of print to create a very flattering silhouette.

Photo can be found here

The second look, a midi-length, all white dress with a plunging V-Neck, appeared in his spring 2012 collection. For this look, I am heavily impressed with his selection of the model, as the ivory shade of the dress pops on her caramel-toned skin. Along with the contrast, the actual dress is a prime example of Galindo sticking to the ultimate fashion mantra: sexy and simple.

Photo can be found here

This final look comes from the spring 2010 evening collection by Cesar Galindo and presents his skills in construction to the world. The dress acts similarly to the white gown from his Spring 2012 collection due to the fact that it is a bold color placed on a very dark-skinned model, however, the constructed one-shoulder design is absolutely exhilarating. This is by far my favorite look of all of his recent collections.

<3 Naa