LONDON FASHION WEEK A/W2011-12 - LOUISE AMSTRUP

With designers seeking new ways to strike the emancipation offered by the onset of minimalism, Louise Amstrup – much like Marc Jacobs in New York – offset sharp, unfussy forms with sententious femininity. If Spring/Summer signalled the flighty evolution of her stark aesthetic, then – anchored in the inspiration of Natural Born Killers’ Mallory Knox – autumn welcomed an elegant stomp through rebellion.

From sharp Zoot-suit crombies, strong but not overpowering at the shoulder, pitched in nubby, asphalt wools and peppered with sharp patent panels to the subtly Mod-ish shapes of slender crew neck shifts panelled vertically in bands of silk, wool and leather, crisp structured silhouettes stood both as a literal invocation of empowered women through the decades and as a visual representation of hard, sharp insurgence.

A foil to such blatant severity, hyper-femininized Fifties forms – hinted at with cropped, voluminous sweaters that bordered on bulbous and the sinuous silks of wide-leg trousers hitting high on the waist, classic oxford shirting and pixel print floor-length eveningwear - came realised in skater-skirt shifts. If curving, flirtatious gowns and classic shifts read as apple-pie housewife, the collection’s patent leather refrain – picked up in a panelled hem, angular darts edging toward the bust and most notably, glistening, wet-look skull caps offset the retro with a timely slither of S&M subversion.

Images by Katy Davies

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LONDON FASHION WEEK A/W2011-12 -JW ANDERSON WOMENSWEAR

We’ve had rustic grunge, we’ve had spiritualised Sixties, now in his third season of showing womenswear – and first upon the catwalk, what’s next for Jonathan Anderson? The piping hot-ticket of the Portico Rooms’ small scale catwalk schedule presented a boundary rebuffing collision of gender and subculture, masculine and feminine, heritage and seditionaries.

A natural evolution considering the skirts and bustles of A/W09-10 and S/S10’s respective menswear showings, this no constraints notion manifested in fragmented and patch worked pieces that bounded with duality. Kicking off with a navy knit two piece – crew neck knit cut second skin tight, long sleeves stretching to the wrist, poised pencil skirt reading adult – the addition of a pleated panel, flailing from the hem and a nonchalant tied waist commenced a symbolic tussle between sober and symbolic.

Shifts were rendered in mohair with lamb fur exploding in bursts from the stomach, clean cut tunics came double sided, paisley at front, glittering lurex at the reverse. Adroitly addressing gender, implicitly feminine knits – gridded in matte navy and white sequins – were dressed down with work slacks and weighty DMs, whilst aristocratic Lodens coats came sliced and spliced – tweed at front, silken paisley at arm and full, natural Mongolian fur luxuriating from the back and hood.

A colour palette of navy, black and drab olive, lifted with punches of tangerine and golden yellow, reinforced the collection’s masculine leanings whilst skirt-fronted trousers and cut-away sweaters, full length kilts and a leather biker in crystalline ice blue – although on the surface effeminate – entered an androgynous, asexual arena when pared down with such considered clarity.

Mix and match though never muddied, through his careful collusion and recontextualisation of the irreconcilable, Jonathan Anderson exploded the notion of constructed naturalism in favour of what “feels right”. This did.  

Images by Sam Wilson.
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LONDON FASHION WEEK A/W2011-12 - CHARLIE LE MINDU

Bookended by blood-dripping nudity crowned with a ‘Violence’ headpiece and the master of ceremonies himself, ambling out in a brutalised butcher’s apron, a barrage of ear-piercing, blood-curdling screams soundtracked Charlie Le Mindu’s perverse,  provocative ode to Salon Kitty, sodomy and Carrie.

Emerging from inky black and peppered with searing, retina assaulting strobes, Daphne Guinness, Pandemonia and a bevy of glammed-up buxom front rowers, saw Le Mindu’s now trademark nudity give way to wipe-clean plastics, regal up-dos and pearl-trim trenches. If blood-red lips, alabaster skin and poised, coiffed locks spoke of a new, purposefully elegant execution, then nip-slip halter-neckdresses, plastic plied, moulded and teased into marabou trim capes, Elizabethan ruffs and pearl trim military caps struck a subversive balance of post-conservative, anti-establishment chaos.

Delicate doilie lace came riffed against Kings Road Mohicans dipped in blood red, brutal strikes of graffiti slashed hair, garment and skin with THE profanity and dripping crucifixes. His couture coiffure taking a comparative back seat, gas masks spewing razor straight blonde locks and sharp centre parts crowned the boys whilst it was a taxidermied eagle taking flight, leaving behind a trail of lace – once again –  dragged through blood red that concluded a collision of faux innocence  and blatant brutality.

Images by Katy Davies.

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LONDON FASHION WEEK A/W2011-12 - CSM MA

We all know the drill at Central Saint Martins’ yearly rather than seasonal showings. Amidst the queues, the inevitable let-down enthusiasts unable to squeeze into the BFC and the buzz, the bite, the hype, and hallow of former graduates, twenty one graduates present their final collections that –fingers crossed – will pitch them into New Gen or Fashion East, Vauxhall Fashion Scout or On|Off, Celine or Chloe.

Drawing parallels to AW 10/11’s collision of manipulated minimalism and bold, blatant expression, fragmented, sculptural neutrals tussled with mix-and-match bricolage. In menswear, Pierong Wu dissected weighty tailoring wools in a symbolic destruction of suiting. Longline knit silhouettes, tunic-like in their slender length came purposefully sullied and manipulated, with contrast sleeves rendered in glistening iridescent technicals and lapel-less blazers pitched off centre with subtle asymmetry. Inky strikes of Yves Klein Blue offered a graphic response to deep uniform greys and rich creams.

Reappropriating the plaids of his BA collection, Shaun Samson melded cable knit and fading blanket plaid prints across crisp minimalist cuts. A revitalisation of stuffy heritage, oversized t-shirt silhouettes, blown-up Buffalo checks and graduated straight-leg trousers capture a collusion of street and aristocracy.

Much like Samson, Raffele Ascione appropriated oversized silhouettes and pieced-together panelling to revitalize, staid, ladylike fabrications. The visor stood as the collection’s central motif, flipped-up papal like to crown each look, flaring from the hip as a lace trimmed peplum or informing jutting, exaggerated shoulders. If felted hoop earrings, jigsaw sweats and blown-up t-shirts read rudegirl then stiff flaring skirts, the printed textures of lace, grayscale herringbone and sepia tinged wallpaper - united across curved shoulder and drop-sleeved forms - saw papal, Milanese nuances resuscitated for now.

Invigorating the existing, Myrza De Muynck sparred sportswear and feminine elegance. Technical nylons and silks elevated panelled trousers and zip-up shelll-suit tops whilst hues of baby pink, jewel embellishment, painted seascapes, delicate embroidery and flaring peplums transformed the at-first-glance athletic.

Epitomising the alternative aesthetics posed at the show, Jenny Postle enshrined models in chiffon separates and maxi dresses plastered in a jagged patchwork panelling of remnants whilst Viktor Smedinge harnessed a neutral palette of black and putty to manipulate and project the female form with curving shoulders, placement scrolls and jointed panelling.

Images by Duilio Marconi.

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