When you think of Spring fashions, think futuristic. The Jetsons meets Blade Runner meets Star Wars. It was the robots who ruled the runways during fashion week around the globe. From Balenciaga and Hussein Chalayan in Paris, Gareth Pugh and Giles Deacon in London, to New York’s very own Narciso Rodriguez, the future is now. Let us no longer speak of fashion designers. Henceforth, we should refer to them as Wizards.

The technological revolution that has completely transformed our society is now making its mark on the fashion scene. We are starting to see exciting new styles that not only make use of technology, but fully embrace it. Spring collections are boldly incorporating new fabrics, new shapes, and new materials. Marshall Cohen, chief analyst for NPD group, said it best when he let Forbes magazine know that “wearable technology will soon be part of our everyday wardrobe.”

The award for the most magical and influential fashion show undoubtedly goes to Hussein Chalayan. He enlisted the help of 2D3D, known for their hi-tech displays and installations for diverse clients (from Jaguar to MTV to the McLellan Gallery). The special effects masters and Chalayan put on a show that left the audience as bewildered as they were fascinated. 2006 will go down as the year that the first remote-controlled dress appeared.

The best part of his show was one gown and one oversize white hat… but his pieces go far beyond their names. As if touched by a magic wand, the “gown” expanded and then immediately contracted. It turned into multiple mirrors, then completely altered its original silhouette to become a flapper dress. Simultaneously, the hat (suspiciously reminiscent of a flying saucer) took on the form of a visor.

How was this done, you ask? Chalayan was not present on stage to rearrange the outfit. Instead, he incorporated microchips into the dazzling gown and hat to accomplish the shape-shifting. Tag-teaming with 2D3D allowed him to satisfy his curiosity and passion:

Granted, Chalayan was not flying solo. Balenciaga, Lanvin, Giles Deacon, and Gareth Pugh (to name a few) had a similar ambience to their work. They also used at least a touch of technology in their collections, displaying patent, multi-layered, metallic, and armor-inspired collections. The clothing made innovative use of modern materials including nylon, latex, gore-tex, and spandex … even a newly concocted organza made of aluminum.

Fashion is spreading into all areas of our culture, and taking full advantage of the technological revolution. It is literally jumping out of magazine pages (and off the models’ bodies). As Giles Deacon told Pop, “in each collection there’s always some new technical thing to solve…to turn this thought/drawing/idea into a 3D piece that you can wear.”

Technology continues to give designers have a new toy to play with, and it’s only just begun. I wouldn’t be surprised if 3D glasses become a must at all fashion shows!

-Sarah Perpich