London has the reputation of a fashion joke. Both in that London produces humorously witty theatrical clothing and that historically, it isn’t taken seriously as a fashion capital against the exciting slickness of New York, the history of Italy, or the grandeur and might of Paris. While the former holds true, the latter is changing. That’s what makes this season so interesting. In the past few years, London has shed the limits of looking for the “next Galliano” or “next McQueen” and focuses on rising young individual talent, nurturing their creativity and backing them up with business with help from the British Fashion Council. The return of Burberry to the London fashion schedule has helped immensely in bringing back buyers and editors but beyond the trench, there’s exciting new talent in the birthplace of punk and home of the Queen. For London, the lure is the lurid, but what people stay for is to buy fashion that is commercially viable and confidently cool.
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CHRISTOPHER KANE
The king of youthful sex appeal through a modern primness, Christopher Kane can be heralded as a Versace for the 21st century—and Donatella approves. This collection, still, was quintessentially British. Nevertheless pretty, something spooky was afoot. Inspired by Frankenstein, Kane was fashion’s doctor mixing together heaviness and lightness, girly pastels with pop art prints, lace and punk duct tape, all wrapped up in a neat Perspex bow. The collage of these materials created a uniquely English view, even more distinctly Christopher Kane’s view of it. It was wearable madness. The incredible lightness felt lush, which came through in woven ribbon suits fit for royalty, but sheer enough for a media scandal. Other strong pieces were almost kimono-esque folded panels in white, bubblegum pink, and butter yellow, the folds were fastened with plastic nuts and bolts, furthering Frankenstein into clever details. The graphic t-shirts paired against hundreds of plastic ribbon bows sewn onto sheer skirts were a smart way to mix the strange with the common. It wasn’t hard to imagine those t-shirts selling out and being worn on the street and alternatively, the theatrical rubber-ribbon is street style candy. For Spring 2013, Kane’s fashion monster is the gift that keeps on giving.
→ See the full collection
SIMONE ROCHA
However undefinable, Simone Rocha knows what the cool girl wants to wear. That’s a strange feat, but it’s one she has successfully accomplished season after season. Working with a school girl silhouette, Rocha creates sensation with her choice of fabrics. From sweet ivory eyelets to metallic gold to plastic layered over simple shirts, the fabrics heightened the sense of texture and future in the clothes. These clothes are for fashion enthusiasts, experimenting with interesting fabrics in an unostentatious way. Rocha’s underlying control and minimalistic approach keep the girly styles from looking ostentatious or over-decorated. This was a comprehendible Prada or an easy-to-wear Comme Des Garçons through the lens of the London look, modest with inventively interesting ideas. The expansive silhouettes toward the end were showstoppers, acidic lemon and coral daisy coats made a strong statement for fashion that goes a bit silly, yet still it feels incredibly real. People will come for her amazing accessories (Perspex soled brogues!) but they’ll be hard pressed to not be entranced by Rocha’s modern take on the saccharine of a school girl. Sweet as cake, tough as plastic.
→ See the full collection
J.W. ANDERSON
Jonathan Anderson is the equivalent of a tiger mom and her rebellious son melding into one person and working in fashion. For Spring/Summer 2013, he tortured himself to create innovative fabrics and interesting silhouettes and his arrival to deceptively simple, almost mechanical garments was like walking from New Mexico to New York instead of taking a plane, a self-inflicted challenge of stepping out of his own comfort zone. That pain paid off. This collection, which began with ruffles and ended in crinkled metallic, showed off separates strongly. There were smart layers of asymmetrical hem sleeveless tops over a half skirt attached to a flowing pinstripe pant, repeated through different color ways. Importantly, the pieces looked like they could be successful separated. As a designer, J.W. Anderson both blurs the line of gender and redraws the line of beauty, all while sitting happily atop an utterly cool line in collaboration with Topshop where he takes his full vision of a lifestyle into action. He’s a forward thinker, and part of the reason his clothing comes off so cool is the fact that he confidently pushes the boundary in an aware-unaware sort of way. The charming mixture of complete lifestyle consideration and consistent obsession with repaving the fashion road is reminiscent of Prada, where he has worked and it’s clear he has learned the codes of awkward beauty and strange proportion. It might have been a hard collection to create, but it’s easy to love.
→ See the full collection
THOMAS TAIT
While the phrase “sport couture” verges on disgustingly pretentious, the words describe Thomas Tait’s designs perfectly, a blend of athletic coolness with voluminous, couture technique. Minimal overall, his beautifully restrained color palettes are emphasized through intellectually luxurious fabrics. For Spring 2013, he brightened up black and white with punchy highlighter citrus, spirited blues, and the best fleshy peach ever. The Canadian Central Saint Martins graduate gave a clever collection of sportswear separates that were anything but basic. While the whole look was an impact, buying one piece could identifiably be Thomas Tait. Considered and creative, the Cristobal Balenciaga-take on everyday clothes for the young, cool girl is smart. While many of his designs stand away from the body, his recent collections have become more rounded, softer, and polished rather than his boxy beginnings. The transition is confident and this is one of his best yet.
→ See the collection
JONATHAN SAUNDERS
While London is often referred to as devoid of the “trend,” Jonathan Saunders proves that British fashion can play the fashion game and retain a free spirit. Opening with holographic that reminded us of Hussein Chalayan, the collection made an unexpected turn for the Marc Jacobs mindset. The stripes that bombarded New York echoed graphically in chevrons and sequins at Jonathan Saunders. The basic silhouettes let his prints and textures make the statement, with watery teal teardrop gradients, maroon curving vector lines, and shocking red suits. The bias cut dress, also big at New York, was successfully slinky (and flippy) with curves printed to mimic the cut.
→ See the collection
MARY KATRANTZOU
Mary Katrantzou knows a thing or two about money, both her bank note prints and successful sales show that. In the age of post-logo mania, her look is distinctive without writing her name across a dress. For Spring 2013, she took her prints and muted them down, using lighter colors and more pared back silhouettes. The trapeze was there but the strong emphasis on the lampshade hip was traded for a slim, flared pant and Celine-esque shapes. She took the fascination with the postcard print to the next level using postage stamps as a motif to create geometry on the body. The variation was apparent, loud looks for the Tommy Ton-lensed and pastel metallic for the high society lady.
→ See the collection
ASHISH
Sloppy nerd, sweatpants, the white shirt, graphic text t’s, off the shoulder, denim on denim on sequins in the daytime— Ashish Gupta played with all of fashion’s teen tropes in a way that kept it cool and oddly effortless. It was an amalgamation of teenage stereotype done in oversized silhouettes and surprising skin on show. Viewed from the front much of the show was very modest, but a buttoned up look could turn around and reveal an extremely naked back. It was unexpected and a fresh rebellion against online consumption of flat fashion. The last look read in bold black text “Très Fatigué” and sometimes life can get tiring. For Spring 2013, just throw a backless sequin dress on over those sweatpants and start waking up.
→ See the collection
London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2013
As London evolves, it is becoming a more well-rounded fashion capital and the change makes it exciting to watch. It’s home to such a wide array of designers, all with a unique vision of what British fashion should be and what that can mean to the world at large. With Philip Treacy showing for the first time in twelve years, drama and theatrics were magical. Giles Deacon’s fantastical Pegasus characters were also created with great skill and whimsy. Marios Schwab’s warrior princess in fringe and Erdem’s patchwork python on lace were unique views on sensual seductive clothing. The Red Label show ended with Dame Vivienne Westwood, in tights, stripping a cape that had “CLIMATE REVOLUTION” stitched onto it and had two models hold it up in a theatrical political statement. Warholian girls with face paint and prim dresses walked about before her. That mashup of politics, punk, prim, and pop defines England’s ability to churn out free, creative fashion. As the city of cool, London’s ability and influence is rising. For anyone who doesn’t see that… the joke’s on them.
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By Iris & Daniel
@everybodyisugly
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Runway images via Zimbio
