GongGirls says brat summer is here to stay amidst demure fall

By: Dee (Deborah) Kwong

Whether Mark Gong was ahead of the curve or took inspiration from this year’s summer, the GongGirls were living dichotomies of brat summer and demure (early) fall. With the fourth and final installment of the saga, the designer focused on Sex and the City’s Charlotte York-Goldenblatt as his muse. Like Charlotte, models had a classier flair compared to Gong’s counterparts in earlier seasons: floral appliqués, silk head scarves, and polka dots reminiscent of 50s suburbia. Still, signature codes made it to the final show. Sharply tailored trenches, sloping seductive necklines, and square framed glasses were paired with each look—contrasting the perfect housewife. This season reflects a hidden narrative of what Charlotte York represents. 

You think Charlotte would have it all. Perfect kids. Perfect marriage. Yet, what happens when you revolve your identity around being the ideal mother and a wife? In the process of wanting to be a wife and mother, Charlotte had forgotten herself.

I wonder if Mark Gong had seen the same clip as I did of HBO’s recent Sex and the City Revival Show. Charlotte York stumbles into her apartment drunk, rambling about how she chucked her phone into a pitcher full of margarita. “Mom, you’re gross,” Lilly says. If this were the old Charlotte, perhaps she would’ve said something else, but instead, "I was a person before I was your wife and your mom!” the new and rebellious Charlotte retorted. 

Mark Gong pulls the curtain back. An inner brat exists beneath the ‘demure,’ prissy and classy Charlotte. Gong dresses the caricature down in GongGirl fashion; graphic t-shirts labeled ‘marry? me?’ (calling to Charlotte’s desperation) are worn under lace corsets, and skimpy bralettes are paired with sophisticated corporate capris. Mark Gong offers SATC fans a chance to look at Charlotte in a fresh way, capturing her in a way that resonates with today’s fans.