This year marks the 20th Anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Yes, time flies.

Since then, Berlin’s united creative spirit has flourished. In a celebration titled “20 Years of Change—Berlin Days in NYC,” the city of Berlin brought its “be berlin” campaign, featuring its most innovative fashion designers, artists and filmmakers, to New York’s New Museum for a three-day manifestation.

Last Tuesday, the event kicked off with a fashion presentation, where looks from 20 Berlin-based designers were flaunted in front of an eager international audience. The show was both conceptual and dynamic. Makeup and hair stylist Nicole Bryl told her team that the look was “futuristic, yet edgy; it needed to look to the past and the future.” This mandate came to life in high-gloss faces and brilliant bouffant hairdos, many of which were wrapped around foam “Berlin Bricks” used to reference the wall’s demise.

Flirty chiffon and smart suiting were in abundance, but a selection of designers pushed the envelope, expressing the cutting-edge (and often delightfully unusual) Berlin aesthetic. Reality Studio’s asymmetrical gray suit walked the fine line of fashionable and practical. Julia Knupfer’s sculptural white felt dress had an editorial look and Lala Berlin’s risqué black knit was the evening’s sexy sensation. The crowd buzzed about Fiona Bennett’s quirky stacked hats and Smeilinener’s rainbow shift dress. But Arrey Kono’s sophisticated Space Age dress and slick, shiny leggings went a step beyond the rest.

While pondering the presentation, I struck up a conversation with a native Berliner who had come to town for the show.

“Have you been to Berlin?” she asked me.
“Unfortunately, I have not.”
“Well, What are you waiting for?”

Well put.