Puppets And Puppets

Puppets & Puppets is one of these New York brands you can’t easily describe. Calling it “surreal” would feel somewhat flat. Elusive, weird, strange, dramatic? Carly Mark‘s universe doesn’t really need a label. One thing’s certain: she loves a cultural reference. Accessorizing a collection inspired by the Dead Ringers film with bags that have phone receivers as handles – that’s Puppets & Puppets behaviour. Then there’s a blow-up print of a 1783 painting, The Operation by Gaspare Traversi, which depicts the wild-eyed face of a screaming man being operated on seemingly without anesthesia. The gory details weren’t immediately apparent when the material was made into garments, even when large swaths of it were used on a sculptural dress that related back to one from last season. The designer also revisited the egg motif (on bras and shoes) introduced in her American Psycho-inspired debut for spring 2020. Despite a few macabre touches, the mood of the autumn collection was sunny-side up: playfully optimistic and sizzling. “I am designing with my body in mind,” said Mark. “The roses on the boobs or the egg bra, where nipples would be – it’s very suggestive. It’s very feminine, it’s very sexual, and it’s a conversation that I’m having with myself in an alpha role in a predominantly male business and world.” Two of the strongest looks were a dress and suit with sheer inset corseting, revealing the midriff; those tailored pieces succeeding in bringing masculine and feminine together, which was one of Mark’s goals. Besides the pannier-like dresses there were also sequin sheaths, a few frocks made in a retro paisley and some party-ready mini dresses. Not every idea from the collection felt refined enough, and there were some low points, like the python-printed jumpsuits and beaded head-wear. Mark tends to overwork her runway looks. Sometimes, madness needs some method.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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In just four years Puppets and Puppets has evolved from a fashion project by an artist to a bona fide fashion brand. Carly Mark’s Eyes Wide Shut-inspired spring 2023 collection was arguably her most wearable. What seems to be happening is that the designs are becoming more aligned with Mark herself, concurrent with her development as an entrepreneur. The designer made the switch to fashion because she was feeling isolated in the art world. “I like interacting with humans,” she explained at a preview. “So I knew I wanted to do something creative, but it needed to be in a way where I was interacting with other bodies and having conversations.” The name she gave the brand is a reference to a cyberpunk anime called Ghost in the Shell; over time her inspirations have become ever more cinematic. And there is a shift from a more illustrative take on clothing to a more photographic one, both in a metaphorical and literal sense. The “demon” print in the spring line-up, which looks anatomical, is actually a manipulated still from the movie Scrooge. If that seems random, you might recall that Eyes Wide Shut is set at Christmas time. This print shares space in the collection with a jacquard based on Gustave Doré’s engravings of Dante’s Inferno and a sweater with an abstract orgy theme (another reference to Stanley Kubrick’s film). The final look features moonbows that call attention to the bust at the same time that volume emphasizes the hips. One of the reasons the designer took Eyes Wide Shut as her inspiration was because Nicole Kidman was such a powerful presence. In one of the scenes in which the actress revealed her strength she was physically vulnerable, wearing only high-cut panties and a camisole. “I’ve been thinking about Nicole Kidman specifically this season because I just turned 34 and I’m growing a business and I’m growing my confidence; I have to in order to run a business,” Mark said. “So I think about being a woman who is sexual, and business minded, and living in a city, and trying to hold my own, and trying to be intelligent, and trying to connect with other people. It’s hard, and it’s funny, and it’s fun, and it’s difficult – and it’s all the things.”