Collection 12 Might Be Christopher John Rogers' Coziest Yet

The designer continues to double down on daywear, with an emphasis on tailored separates, outerwear and knits.

On the last Saturday in April — as celebrities check into the Carlyle, brands put the finishing touches on their looks and the rest of us speculate as to who made Vogue‘s final guest list cut — Christopher John Rogers cut through the Met Gala chatter and anticipation with a runway show at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

The designer now releases two collections a year, timed to fashion’s pre-seasons. (Instead of aligning with “spring” or “fall,” the brand assigns each one a number. Now, we’re at Collection 12.) It drops one as a lookbook and the other, as of last year, at a more traditional fashion show. The once-a-year IRL format really builds the anticipation for the “squirrels,” as Christopher John Rogers dubs its rainbow-clad community of friends and fans, the runway becoming a reunion of sorts — or Squirrel Convention, if you will, with everyone dressed in their finest CJR from collections’ past or bright colors, in honor the designer’s preferred palette.

Even with rain and fog, there was an electricity in the air. Since its first collection and especially as the brand developed and grown, Christopher John Rogers has set out not just to surprise, but also to challenge expectations. The designer delights in playing with the most recognizable of its codes — the aforementioned rainbow, the big skirts, the cinched blazers — to both build upon and subvert them.

He also pushes against fashion’s instinct to pigeonhole: As the brand received global acclaim for its colorful gowns, it doubled down on daywear, with an emphasis on tailored separates, outerwear and knits. The goal, it would seem, is to show that every single aspect of a wardrobe, from a favorite shirtdress to a winter coat, can be infused with CJR magic.

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Now, there are still plenty of incredible dresses that’ll look great on a red carpet (or, maybe, on the steps of the Met Museum…), but Collection 12 might go down as the brand’s coziest yet. Rogers’ knitwear has become one of his most popular offerings; the brand’s striped, oversized sweaters sell out season after season.

This collection pushes that agenda even further, with new styles and experiments with softness: There are sleeveless, open-front longline tops styled over cargo pants, thick pullovers draped over the shoulders and textured fringed pencil skirts, tank dresses and cardigans in Crayola-bright hues. There are new rainbow stripes, as well as fuzzy overcoats that channel Sesame Street in the absolute best way.

Rogers also has a phenomenal sense of humor, infusing the collection with refined interpretations of everyday items that serve as somewhat unorthodox references — like a suit of three-dimensional pleated bows that look like the plastic ones you might see on a birthday gift, or a shiny black lamé reminiscent of a trash bag. The names of the colors are, as always, a delight: White is “Marshmallow,” for one, and yellow is “Yellowcake.”

Fashion is art, and it can also be silly. Part of Rogers’ distinctive strength is this balancing act: The brand maintains a delicate equilibrium between these two truths, at all times. That’s also what makes these collections so fun to consume — you can take a look at face value, and it’s a stunning, impressive piece of clothing; you could also dig deeper into the subtext, and find all the threads the brand’s pulling from, the self-reflection and the callbacks to previous releases. Each one builds on the one that came before it, becoming a sort of visual diary of how far the team has come since launching straight out of SCAD in 2016. And oh, the places it still has to go.

See Christopher John Rogers’ Collection 12 in full, below.

Christopher John Rogers Collection 12. Photo: Fillipo Fior/Courtesy of Christopher John Rogers