Tuesday, 25 December 2012
Posted with Blogsy
Friday, 16 November 2012
FASHION | Oxford Fashion Week: Elysium Concept Show [Pt 3]
As The Elysium
Concept Show drew to a close, the final two collections left us on a major high. Staggeringly contrasted, but equally as
powerful, Chloe Reynolds and Sarah Palin’s compilations were forcefully feminine.
Aptly named ‘The
Black Collection’ the womenswear designer presented a dominant series and the
ninja-like characters slinked down the catwalk with authority and presence. With a clear nod to Japanese design, the pieces emulated an
air of protection, defiance and strength yet maintaining a womanly softness.
Although a purely black collection there was no trace of
monotony as intricate, laser cut patterns instilled variation and a uniqueness to
each piece.
(OFW BLOG)
The fierce fetish trend of yester-season is a beast that
appears tamed but should still be approached with respectful caution.
Sarah Palin
(OFW BLOG)
The show’s finale came in the form of graduate Sarah
Palin’s ‘Decadent Art, Rotten Beauty’ collection.
Having already received attention from Vogue Online, WGSN
and Catwalking.com, the exquisitely feminine collection was built out of a type
of reinforced paper called Tyvek which exudes a romantic, nostalgia.
Concealed layers of autumnal prints were revealed through
the disjointed hemlines and tearaway windows adding a rugged, tainted purity to
each elegant piece.
The collection was based around finding beauty in what’s
perceived as rotten and decayed as if the classic structures were created from
discarded newspaper blown together in a creative gust of autumn wind.
Wednesday, 14 November 2012
FASHION | Oxford Fashion Week: Elysium Concept Show [Pt 2]
The
Japanese born CSM graduate has worked for Alexander McQueen and Vivienne
Westwood so a designer influenced by my hero and heroine of fashion raised
more than a little excitement.
(CATWALKING.COM)
Presenting
the BA final collection entitled ‘Book-a-holic’, the young designer’s eclectic
printing skill were debuted in their full finery. Delicate book pages are exposed in a
wash of deep blue onto crisp linens and cottons and delicately complimented by
leaves and flowers.
My
favourite piece was the above pictured dress with its intricate leafy overlay evoking
the natural, feminine romanticism of the collection.
Further
international influence infused in the week was the offering from Greek designer
Yiannis Kariotoisis with his SS13 collection -
UTOPIA.
The
passionate yellows and endless flow of material running through the collection
emulated the ripples heat of a far Eastern paradise. The trail of drapes and
capes lead the imagination through a bustling Moroccan market or the tiled
corridors of an Arabian palace and conjures the warmth of a strong summer
season collection. The little variation between pieces and highlights of
shimmering material emphasises continuity in a hazy mirage-like blur.
Monday, 12 November 2012
FASHION | Oxford Fashion Week: Elysium Concept Show [Pt 1]
Elysium: A place or state of perfect happiness
//Paradise//Heaven//
The Elysium Concept
Show, the Friday night event of Oxford Fashion Week 2012, showcased a tasty
array of interpretations from the fashion industry’s forthcoming talent.
With mulled wine
truffles circulating the ornate Oxford Town Hall, the atmosphere was rife for this season's instalment of the regional fashion week which launched in 2009. A
city celebrated for its ‘out of the box’ attitude was sure to deliver something
innovative. The audience was transported through fantasy worlds engulfed in artistic
apparel and trend-driven tribes on a fantastic fashion journey.
This series of
posts will celebrate the collections of the OFW12 designers.
CRIMSON-ROSE O'SHEA
C Martin Prechelmacher
Specifically produced for OFW, Crimson-Rose O’Shea’s collection
pushed the boundaries to breaking point. As if drawn into a futuristic underwater
wonderland, the use of iridescent materials emulated ripples of underwater
lights. The shoal of models wore crustacean-esque masks and headwear resembling
sea-dwellers as if part of a mutant pirate tribe. Keeping a glamorous, feminine
aesthetic, each item drove gasps from the enchanted crowd.
London-based O’Shea is a Central
Saint Martins BA Fashion Design graduate with impressive background. She has worked for John Galliano, Diane Von
Furstenburg and Elisa Palomino and a design consultancy at LVMH/Sephora. As a
freelance designer, she has contributed to Vogue, Dazed & Confused, AnOther
and Hunger as well as being a costume designer for ballet, music and film
industry.
Oxford is renowned for being a hub of education and creativity and
Brookes should by no means be overshadowed by its academic neighbours. Fashion
students on the 2012-13 OBU Foundation Art and Design Course displayed a powerful
collection from their first brief – ‘abstract impressionism’.
Branded by strokes and splatters of neon paint the loosely
structured latex creations fashioned a futuristic tribal vibe. Straying from past
structured, regimented uniformity this collection, with gaping seams and flapping
folds, offers the breakaway freedom of a new, rebellious gang.
Favourite accessories of the entire show were the plastic orange ‘glasses’
on a chain which added to the space-age feel of this collection.
-- ALL PHOTOS:© Claire Williams Photography --
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
FASHION | Halloween Haute Couture - Part Two
My
final halloween post for 2012 (promise!) is dedicated to Rachel Freire and her
Nippleocalypse collection of SS12.
Freire’s
distinctive designs include a structured bodice dress made from 3000 cow and
yak nipples amongst further cage-like gowns and headpieces. They were revealed
at London Fashion Week and also displayed at Paris Fashion Week although too
heavy to grace the runway.
Although
the idea creates an initially grusome shudder, kudos is owed to this artist for
creating such elegant and feminine pieces from the debris of a slaughterhouse
floor. The lilac hue and floral structure are striking and it’s only on close
inspection that the teats are identifiable.
Dabbling in fashion since 2009, the
Liverpudlian CSM graduate is a self confessed ‘artist in wolf’s clothing’ as
opposed to fashion designer and this collection certainly channels strong
underlying messages.
They have been dubbed
by animal rights groups as 'grotesque' but I think these powerful pieces couldn’t be
further from it.
“Most of our lives these days is a fantasy world, hiding
from one reality or another. So why not dress for the party?”
– Rachel Freire
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