What is modern Irish design? For a such a small island nation, it’s a complex answer. There mightn’t be an obvious linear evolution of what we might consider a region’s design history, in the way we can trace design movements in say, Germany, Scotland or Sweden. Instead, there exists a rich heritage of crafting and making, which, over time, has resulted in an aesthetic that is rich, roughly hewn and distinctly Irish. 

This is not to say that Irish fashion designers can be described as a neat coterie. Modern Irish designers are just as likely to be influenced by the wild craggy cliff faces of the west as they are the urban grit of Limerick city; they reference folkloric narrative, as Simone Rocha did for SS’20 when she reimagined the Wren boys with their gaudy painted faces and straw suits; and they pursue the horrors that emerged from the sinister allegiance of Church and State, the tentacles of which still grip some parts of modern Ireland, as Roisin Pierce’s explored in her debut collection Mná ì bhláth (Women In Bloom).

Underpinning this storytelling is the tangible history of textile making that can be found in nearly every corner of the country. Linen from Derry, lace from Carrickmacross, tweed from wild north-west Donegal, and of course, Irish wools. These ancient traditions of weaving and spinning are both ancient and thoroughly modern, at risk of being a dying art yet vital to the industry well beyond the borders within they are created. Ahead of her SS’20 collection for Alexander McQueen, designer Sarah Burton decamped to Northern Ireland for several days to study the techniques of local textile makers. 

And what of the next generation of designers? The aesthetic of the young Irish designers poised on the edge of the industry cannot be contained in a few words. It is a motely mix, a heady combination of Celtic tradition and ‘foreign’ influence; for this is no longer the homogenous Catholic nation it was half a century ago.

Tags: Fashion, irish design, Talent Watch

“As soon as you can crawl, you are put on a mat to train” quotes Kauan Gracie, recalling her earliest memory to stylist Beatriz Maués. The Gracies’ first female run Jiu-Jitsu academy celebrates the art of self defence through dance and sisterhood – shot by Liberto Filló and styled by Beatriz Maués. The Gracies set the scene for issue 22, where focus, determination and individual spirit are recurring themes throughout our features.

Supermodel Carolyn Murphy covers Twin’s latest issue in an existential polar journey, shot by Hans Neumann. Paolo Such takes a walk with metal rapper Dana Dentata in LA and Stefanie Mosshammer covers the world’s fashion waste with an anthropomorphic clothing series. Molly Matalon explores sex and intimacy and Clare Shilland dreams of space and speed. 

Elsewhere we catch up with the prodigal theatre director Ola Ince who’s fresh from a run at The Donmar and about to tackle Shakespeare’s finest at The Globe; rising star Sophie Leseberg Smith talks the music of poetry and Rochelle White and Hamed Maiye talk the power of food through their creative platform, Eating At the Same Table.

We profile rising Scandinavian artist Ragna Bley and get into the detailed perfection of Ron Nagle’s art. Liv Siddall welcomes the lunar return of The Big Moon and Kate Neave presents the daring feminist art of Harmony Hammond. And the radical vision of Tara Joshi, Otegha Uwagba, Valeria Napoleone and Daisy Walker are celebrated in ‘She Said Boom’. 

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Tags: Beatriz Maués, Carolyn Murphy, Clare Shilland, Daisy Walker, Dana Dentata, Hamed Maiye, Hans Neumann, Harmony Hammond, Kate Neave, Kauan Gracie, Liberto Filló, Liv Siddall, Molly Matalon, Ola Ince, Otegha Uwagba, Paolo Such, Ragna Bley, Rochelle White, Ron Nagle, Sophie Leseberg Smith, Stefanie Mosshammer, Tara Joshi, Valeria Napoleone

Fendi’s latest episode of their Baguette Friends Forever ( BFF) series features the familiar face of supermodel and vitiligo public ambassador Winnie Harlow on a Miami adventure with her real life best friend , model and influencer Shannon Hamilton. In the episode , the day begins with Winnie on her phone with her bestie calling from NYC as they chat about day dreaming of passing time in Miami.

Soon after, Harlow ventures on a mini shopping spur where the FENDIFRENESIA room captures her attention and the fragrance notes remind her of moments she shared with her BFF Shannon.  Upon checking out the fit of the scented Baguette, Winnie is then interrupted by a voice that exclaimed “nice bag” and when she turns to answer with the the slogan “this is not a bag, its a Baguette,” she discovers the surprise of it being Shannon herself! It then continues to document their fun filled day throughout Miami from under palm trees to beauty salons as they flaunt their full FENDI gear which included the Nano and the Pico Baguettes. 

The brand first launched their digital  campaign #BaguetteFriendsForever last year which included a series of short films featuring the storylines of inseparable groups of friends around the world throughout one of their daily routines which is centred around the iconic Fendi baguette introduced on the seasonal runways . All pieces are currently available in stores worldwide and online, to shop the looks , visit Fendi.

Tags: accessories, Fashion, Fendi, miami

Cover image: Vera & Barbara Ann Duffy and Jimmy, Saoirse, and Albie

Over the period of a year and two months, New York based photographer and creative director Justin Aversano photographed 100 sets of Twins from all across the world which he has recently published in his latest hardcover photobook Twin Flames.

“I photographed 100 sets of twins, aiming to create a body of work focused on the existence of multiple births and the phenomena of twindom through an immersive portrait survey. Twins and multiple siblings provide a lens on the magic and causality of biology. In our everyday society, twins, triplets et al. have an assigned position within all current and historical cultures—a shared tulpa of genetics, fate and timing. Twindom has a deep root in shared storytelling, its visuals conjure metatextual manifestations across the astrological, the mythological, the academic and the popular, stringing together tangents of the everyday and simultaneously karmic,” explained Aversano.

Each image was shot using three formats of film Polaroid, by focusing on the simple idea of seeking an “intentional phenomenology” by direct image making and facilitating a broad and reflexive photographic engagement that is about these unique individuals and their presence in a collective nature.

The full hardcover compilation of images Twin Flames is currently available for purchase online.

Tags: NYC, photo books, Photographer, photography, twin

All images are Courtesy of the Catherine Edelman Gallery, Chicago

Cover Image: Hank, 76, and Samm, 67, North Little Rock, AR, 2015

Over the past five years photographer Jess T Dugan and social worker & professor Vanessa Fabbre traveled throughout the United States in documentation of the stories and imagery of transgender and gender nonconforming older adults in the country. Traveling from coast to coast , the duo sought out subjects whose experiences of life exist in the intersections of gender identity, age , race , ethnicity , sexuality, socioeconomic background &  geographic location. The result of their venture, a moving body of work giving voice & visibility to an underrepresented group of older individuals with a wide variety of narratives spanning throughout the last ninety years, offering a historical record of transgender experiences & activism in the USA in the form of a book and several exhibitions. 

“So many trans-related stories in the media are about people being murdered orare about discrimination of some kind. With this project, I wanted to create representations of many different ways of living and aging as a trans person. I also wanted to record the history of people who, in many cases, paved the road for the world we live in now. I worried their stories were at risk of being lost or forgotten, and I wanted to record and preserve them,” explained Jess T. Dungan.

“For me, part of the inspiration for this project also came from thinking about the limits of knowledge dissemination in the social sciences, especially in terms of our ability to engage in broader cultural forces and public discourse. I saw the potential to make an impact beyond academia by creating this project together, ” added professor Fabbre.

Each story, each image captured and included in the photo series, shines a brighter light on stories that have been long overlooked, and in many ways creates blooms of hope and validation for onlooking generations of trans individuals.

“This coming into my real, real fullness of knowing why I was different is because I was expressing my spirit to this world. And I didn’t know how God felt about it, but I believe in God and I have a deep spiritual background and I talk with the Holy Spirit constantly who’s taken me from the Lower West Side doing sex work to being at the White House.” – Dee Dee Ngozi .

“One of the hardest things in terms of transitioning was the difference in personal space. When I was perceived as female, there wasn’t a lot of touching. Women don’t get into each other’s space. When two women are attracted to each other they don’t immediately put their hands on the other woman’s body. It’s not considered appropriate. Whereas the way men cruise, there’s about two seconds of eye contact, and then an approach, and either hands on your chest or hands in your crotch or some other type of immediate physical contact.I started out with a lot of insecurity in terms of my body, insecure about myself, and it has taken time to build confidence.” – Mike

“I just know I’m me. I don’t think in terms of names and forms and all that. It doesn’t matter.I’m just myself and that’s who I am.I am at peace with myself. It is the most wonderful feeling in the world because you’re never in a hurry to get somewhere, you know, to prove to anyone that you’re who you know you are. I know who I am, and what other people think about me is none of my business. So that’s who I am. I identify as the Duchess.

I knew that I might lose family, that people might reject me. But I weighed that, and I thought,“If I lose everything and everybody, but I keep me, that’s all that matters. That’s all that matters, because I’m not going to live a life that I’m not happy in, for other people.Why?It doesn’t make any sense.”So I put my money down and took my chances. My family accepted me. They came to accept me, and I’ve had kids around me, I’ve gone to all the weddings, all the funerals, and it’s a situation that everybody just thinks of me as who I am. It’s not even an issue anymore. “Oh, you mean her? Oh, that’s just Auntie.” – Duchess Milan

“When I was five years old,I found my older brother’s first communion suit. It was a very cool looking suit, white and double-breasted, and it fit me perfectly. I wouldn’t take it off.I wore it everyday. Day in and day out, until my parents got so tired of seeing it on me, they turned it into a Halloween costume as a way to get rid of it.When I was older,I played in this little rock band and one time whenI was over at my friend’s house I heard his mother mention a story about a person named Christine Jorgenson who had “changed sex.”I couldn’t keep my mind on practice after that!I wanted to find out more about this person, but you couldn’t Google it, of course, and so it took me months to find it. I was finally able to piece together that this was a person who knew their gender and went somewhere and there were people who could help.” – David

“When we got married, I never imagined that someday my husband would become my wife,” Cheryle said. “Right from the start, SueZie confided that she identified as female on the inside, but transition never appeared to be an option. But, I never had a problem with her wearing lingerie. You know, it’s just clothes. I fell in love with the person inside, and what’s on the outside is more about what they feel comfortable with.”

For more information on the ongoing exhibition and book purchases visit To Survive on This Shore.

Tags: Art, exhibition, LGBT, photo books, photography, Transgender

Recently the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (MCA) opened it’s doors to its latest exhibition entitled Duro Olowu: Seeing Chicago. Curated by internationally acclaimed Nigerian-British designer Duro Olowu known for his womenswear label, the exhibition is a recollection of the public and private art pieces of Chicago which are anchored by the MCA’s art collection.

The exhibition is a conversation, a map between artists, media and geography which using a combination of paintings, sculptures, photographs and films in layered textured scenes to incorporate fashion. On the ocassion, Olowu engaged with numerous institutional and private collections in Chicago and selected artworks that reflect mutual ways of seeing, selecting, and acquiring across the city, which he curated  in manner to reveal unexpected connections, patters and common interests in  ‘salon-style,’ using vertical wall space and playful combinations to place works in surprising conversations with one another. Olowu has organized the show to prioritize aesthetics and the visual experience of the visitor, with wall colours including saturated shades of orange, purple, and teal – inspired by the exhibition. 

Duro Olowu: Seeing Chicago is currently underway at the MCA and will run until May 10th.

Tags: Art, chicago, exhibition

Post-production of all images by Dutch Retouch

Within the past 16 months photographer Lotte van Raalte shot 46 women age ranged from 13 to 46 in their most natural forms, which she has compiled into the launch of her first photo book entitled BODY.  The book is a visual documentary of the photographer’s encounters with these women and on a larger scale it is a celebration of individuality, life and the beauty found in both vulnerability and strength throughout the female body and experience. 

“With my photography, I’m always on a quest for candid in-between-moments. It takes genuine interest and care to capture people in their most authentic and free way of being. BODY originally started as research towards the female body. Each time I photographed someone, I was left fascinated, curious and inspired at the same time. I think my fascination with the female body comes from different angles: the fact that women are dominantly sexualised and unrealistically portrayed in the fashion, movie and music industry. The fact that the female body is the carrier of new life, and the tremendous impact that has. And last but not least, the fact that I’m a woman myself, ” the photographer commented. 

The book is currently available for purchase online and will soon see a launch event on the 26th of March Oaxaca Mexico at La Señora Gallery following the local launch event in London a few weeks ago. 

Tags: female photographers, feminist photographer, photo books, photography

This evening Hen’s Teeth London launches their latest production HONEY DIJON: Black Girl Magic with Marina Esmeraldo at Dover Street Market which will be followed by an exhibition at the Hen’s Teeth Dublin 8 Gallery. 

The project is a celebration of six black iconic female music icons handpicked by DJ Honey Dijon herself with large-scale neons crafted by Brazilian artist and collaborator Marina Esmeraldo . 

The graphic neon pieces with powder coated aluminium backing feature the likes of names such as Chaka Khan, Diana Ross, Grace Jones, Sade, Erykah Badu and Sylvester and also in limited edition A2 & A3 giclée prints, canvas totes and postcards which will be onsale at DSM and online the Hen’s Teeth website post launch. 

Speaking about the concept for the show, Greg Spring, creative director at Hen’s Teeth, said: “This is Hen’s Teeth’s first big international show and the first in a series of planned exhibits that will see us creating shows with musicians and artists who have never curated shows before. To be doing it with our longtime collaborator Marina Esmeraldo and Honey Dijon, an icon in her own right, who has collaborated with COMME des GARÇONS and Dior in the past year and now Hen’s Teeth, is an unbelievable honour.”

Visit Hen’s Teeth for further details.

Tags: Dover Street Market, exhibition, honey dijon

Demna Gvasalia is one of the only creative directors who manages to find an enviable balance between staying on trend and being political at the same time. The FW20 show presented in Paris last weekend was a show to remember , one that spoke directly to the inescapable doomsday that will brought by global warming, yet offering subtle glimmers of hope throughout the way. 

The show’s set played a major role in the narrative —  a flooded platform with water that bordered so wide that it submerged the first front rows seatings which was a subtle hint to the the primary responsibilities that lie with the decision makers of the industry. The ceilings of the room were screens programmed to produce eerie graphics birds fleeing and dark lighting which felt like a scene from a horror film. 

It was as if he imagined the day of reckoning where humanity would be confronted with all its wrongdoings against Mother Earth, the day where Mother Earth herself wouldn’t wreak havoc upon the race with a menacing chaos. A mass of confusion so dire that it would wipe out whatever boundaries or structures we previously held which of course includes dress codes. Gvasalia dressed his subjects by fusing and recontextualizing dress codes associated with traditional values and desires. The religious was fused with the every day by way of clerical robes interpreted into casual wear ; bodybuilder fitted outfits made oversized for an one size fits all aesthetic and night gown prints made into powerful evening-wear. Sports, religion, obsession  and seduction are a stripped of their functions and symbolisms and melted into one. It was a political statement aimed at climate change but also one that fired shots in the direction of religion and the traditional symbolism of the sacred versus the seductive. 

“I had a lot of clerical wear in my research. I come from a country where the Orthodox religion has been so predominant. I went to church to confess every Saturday. Back then, I remember looking at all these young priests and monks, wearing these long robes and thinking, ‘How beautiful.’ You see them around Europe with their beards, hair knotted back and backpacks. I don’t know, I find it quite hot—but that’s my fetish,” the designer explained. 

“How comes it is acceptable for clerics to wear that, but if I put on a long jacket and a skirt I will be looked at? I can’t, even in 2020! Religious dress codes are all about hiding the body, about being ashamed—body and sex is the taboo. Whereas when you look into it, some of these people are the nastiest perverts.”

Gvasalia created a collection that spoke to climate change, traditional dress codes and perversions of the church all while making reference to the house’s archives and staying in line with the current day trend. Such level of aptitude and interest in social change showcased, only makes one more intrigued for the house’s re-opening of their couture division later this year.

Tags: Balenciaga, Fashion, Fashion Week, fw20, Paris

For the past few seasons Alexander McQueen Creative Director Sarah Burton has been resorting to the quietude of poetry as sparks of inspiration for her latest collection. A strategy that has been working quite well in finding the beauty in little things to execute and amplify on a larger scale. The beauty in nature or culture or in this case heritage. Burton’s FW20 references stemmed from a trip to Wales where she grew fond of several aspects of the country’s heritage.   

“The collection is a love letter to women and to families, colleagues and friends. We went to Wales and were inspired by the warmth of its artistic and poetic heritage, by its folklore and the soul of its craft, “ she commented. 

She drew direct inspiration from the Wrexham Tailor’s Quilt was an artefact and one of the most well known patchworks that was crafted over a ten year from 1842 using recycled scraps he had used to craft the uniforms he made during the day. The quilt known for its detailed visuals which stood as a representation of something greater, braver and aspirational knowing that it was pieced together by scraps. The literal and symbolic sentiment of this resonated with the designer.

“The woman is courageous, grounded, bold: heroic. There is a sense of protection in the clothes, of safety and comfort, evoked through quilting and blankets. The hearts are a symbol of togetherness, of being there for others.” 

The collection was a collage of sharp seamed graphic tailoring that incorporated upcycled wool flannels woven in British mills from previous McQueen seasons and set in dramatic geometric blocks, which was also very much in line with the brand’s recent initiative of a fabric donation scheme for future designers. 

“The ethos at Alexander McQueen means that everything we use in researching and designing collections has always been archived and stored”, she notes. “We’ve never thrown anything away.” Mindful of providing access to students who need resources, the scheme activates an imaginative purpose for the remaindered luxury fabrics which have been routinely saved after the sampling and production cycles of women’s and men’s collections over the past decade,” Burton said of the initiative. 

This collection was a further step to this project , pulling on fabrics from the brand’s archive to piece together an impressive collection which spoke to the concepts of warmth, family and heritage all while being sustainable while at it.

Tags: Alexander Mcqueen, Fashion, Fashion Week, fw20, Paris Fashion Week

Late last month during Milan Fashion Week , the Italian chamber of fashion Camera Nazionale Della Moda Italiana launched an exhibition entitled Memos on Fashion in this Millenium, in collaboration with Museo Poldi Pezzoli and with the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

The exhibition was inspired by the series of lectures written by author Italo Calvino  called Lezione Americane which he was set to give at Harvard in 1985, but was never given the chance as a result of his sudden death. During the time, his wife opted to publish the lectures with the author’s original title, Six Memos for The Next Millenium. 

Calvino’s work inspired the exhibition simply because it poses the question  as to whether fashion, as a cultural industry, a communication system, a rich, hybrid yet problematic terrain, be considered a scientific and a poetic practice, and therefore naturally literary? By using his words as a guide , the exhibition takes its audience through a guide throughout the history of fashion by way of memorable images and garments created with deeper meanings to them. 

Featuring a collection of garments, images, objects, magazines that serve as a part of fashion history by designers and creators such as :

Giorgio Armani,  J.W. Anderson for Loewe, Arthur Arbesser, Demna Gvasalia for Balenciaga, Boboutic, Riccardo Tisci for Burberry, Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel, Gabriele Colangelo, Maria Grazia Chiuri for Dior, Marco de Vincenzo, Fendi, Maria Sole Ferragamo, Paul Andrew for Ferragamo, Alessandro Michele for Gucci, Maison Martin Margiela, Francesco Risso for Marni, Noir per Moncler Genius, Moschino, MSGM, Fausto Puglisi, Prada, Pier Paolo Piccioli for Valentino, Giambattista Valli, Random Identities Versace and Zegna, all of whom help to shape the 3 dimensional structure of the exhibition’s aesthetic visually designed by Stefano Tonchi.

The exhibition is now underway at the Museo Poldi Pezzoli in Milan and will be open until the 4th of May.

Tags: cnmi, exhibition, Fashion, fashion exhibition, Milan Fashion Week

Cover image : Oluwole Omofemi, ‘Omonalisa II’, Oil and acrylic on canvas, 121 x 121 cm, 2019. Courtesy Signature African Art

Mayfair based art gallery Signature African Art is set to open it’s new space with an exhibition by Nigerian artist Oluwole Omofemi entitled The Way We Were . In the words of the artist herself , the exhibition will be a celebration of Afrocentric pride and a reflection on the post colonial era. Throughout the exhibition Omofemi explores the importance of black hair in the black community as a call for people to assert their own identity through their own stories and shedding traces and definitions of identity left from colonialism.  

The artist also references more recent times regarding The Civil Rights Movement of the ‘60s and ‘70s and the natural hair movement that came with it, made popular by icons such as Diana Ross , Jimi Hendrix and Angela Davis. 

Throughout her work hair is a metaphor for something deeper , a level of freedom prized with the owning of ones own identity, very much similar to the significance and thought process of black woman choosing to keep or go natural in the community. Rendered in oil and acrylic, her paintings at times have simple primary coloured backgrounds, which lend them a vivid Pop Art sensibility; in others, a darker mood is created, referencing the works of the Old Masters.

Located in Davies Street, Mayfair, Signature African Art was founded by Rahman Akar. Of its first show, he says: “We are delighted to be opening a space in London, and thrilled that Oluwole Omofemi, one of Nigeria’s most compelling young artists, is our first show. In addition to his mastery of composition, his works are at once both celebratory and deeply thought-provoking.”

The Way We Were exhibition opens on the 12th of March at the Signature Art Gallery in Mayfair, it will run until the 9th of April.

Tags: african art, Art, exhibition, exhibitions in London, Hair

It is safe to that Creative Director Silvia Venturini Fendi has been hitting her stride within the past few seasons. For FW20-21, the designer explored what it means to be a FENDI woman , or rather FENDI women with a collection that spoke to the different interpretations of what it means to be feminine. It was a collection that was charged with power yet stroked with softness and delicacy. It was a play between between a total dominance and a graceful elegance that was brought out even through the fabrics used. A mixture of cashmere, leather, lace and even fur were the headliners. 

“Tailoring and outerwear is built around nipped waists; flared officer’s coats, burnished perfectos and high-octane blazers are boned through the bodice with shoulders that plane to a flat point or drop into a Juliet sleeve. Voluptuous shapes unfurl into cozy loopback sweaters, a bonded leather accordion skirt and bibbed organdie blouses.”

Each silhouette was defined by its respective story. The FENDI Fall/Winter 2020-2021 Accessories Collection were also optly paired with this season’s boudoir themes, as padded lambskin ‘brace’ booties and satin ‘suspender’ pumps elicit vampish airs.

In three sizes, a new accordion-frame Peekaboo bag opened in a deep ‘smile’ to reveal interchangeable inside pockets in smooth leather and precious skins. It appeared also dipped in gold leather fringes or traced with appliqué lacework and beaded tassels. The iconic Baguette bag in handknit wool was joined in leather shopper bags and charms inspired by vintage FENDI packaging, returning from the last Men’s Collection.

Tags: Fashion, Fashion Week, Fendi, fw20, Milan Fashion Week

The city of Milan was the inspiration behind Arthur Arbesser’s FW20 collection which he presented just this past weekend. The designer was fascinated by the subtle and at times hidden beauties of the city such as the vintage architecture and design.

As a foreigner, living in the city for the past six years, he’s had the opportunity to observe the city’s gems from an objective perspective which he re-interpreted into this collection. Within the that he created strong graphics that were balanced with clean silhouettes and aspects that were to be discovered. 

The collection played with an interesting autumn palette of warm burgundy, milk white , black velvet and different shades of brown that also featured the designer’s signature pattern. He also collaborated with his fellow designer friend Marco Guazzini, who is the creator of a ceramic-like material named Marwoolus that mixes pressed marble powder and wool. In white, but flecked with attractive abstract plumes of color, these were Marwoolus single-button jackets, belts, pendants, earrings and a few skirts, shirts, and pants as well.

Tags: arthur arbesser, Fashion, fw20, Milan Fashion Week, Womenswear

This weekend Francesco Risso presented his FW20 collection for Marni as an abstract reinterpretation of the age old tale of Alice in Wonderland. 

“Where are you, Alice?

I’m not here right now, and probably not there. I am down the rabbit hole, luxuriating in a time warp.

Are you coming back anytime soon?

I don’t know. I feel like I have been here for a while, but probably I just arrived. Who are you?

I am Venus, Alice. Venus of the Rags. Do you recall me? I come with no tags, usually in full drag.

What can I do for you?

Please make sure you make, do, ment, and that you never bend. Take scraps, bits and pieces, never to be shredded in pieces. Be a militant, always vigilant.

Is this your vow?

Aim for the rainbow. But tell me, Alice, what was it like to fall in the hole?

I felt micro, then went macro, as the natural sped up to supernatural.”

The collection saw remnants of fabric collaged to create each look. Coats and tabards were created and worn with mini and maxi skirts made from scraps of leather and the calico that dress toilet were made from. Velvet, fragments of metal and even scraps of cotton fabric that were woven togethers by hand in a factory in Venice on looms that were originally designer by Leonardo Da Vinca.  It was all an exploration of patchwork , a collection of memories, of thoughts, and fabrics, pieced together to create one story. 

It was one those stories that left you asking yourself a question , as Risso noted, “ Are we in a psychedelic world and we need to be more grounded, or are we in a caged world and we need to be freed by psychedelia?” 

Either way the designer’s collection fell into neither the categories of grounded nor caged but in all senses was an exploration of  psychedelia from the details of glitter doused make up and hair to the precision of weaving of all the separate scraps of fabrics in a way which seamlessly harmonized them as the voices on a choir. 

Tags: Fashion, Fashion Week, francesco risso, fw20, Marni, Milan Fashion Week

Designer Miuccia Prada is no stranger to the movement of feminism. She has not only covered the topic in past runway shows, but her presence in itself as one of the leading female forces in fashion is symbolic for many.

For her FW20 womenswear show the designer tackled traditional standards of what it means to be intrinsically feminine as she challenges the notion of femininity equating to softness, fragility and sensuality and proposing that this tradition delicacy can and should be what defines strength. With this in mind, she dresses her woman with the idea of finding power and strength in such paradoxes. Vents, layered fringes and deconstructed pleats reveal skin, and underscore locomotion.

Movement is tied to the corporeal , to athleticism, hence to sportswear. All these forms of everyday glamour are challenged from practical to aesthetic. Cinched waists of nylon puffer coats create a classic feline shape paired with gum boots for contrasts. The collection is a reflection of the construct of femininity, and an ode to it’s many different shapes, forms , sizes and manifestations. Each pairing , each look acts as a protest against the idea that there is a singular definition to what it means to be feminine, or what it means to be a woman. 

Tags: Fashion, Fashion Week, fw20, london fashion week, Milan Fashion Week, prada, Womenswear

For FW20, Gucci’s Alessandro Michele paid tribute to fashion shows and the production process behind seen through from the perspective of a magical ceremony.  For the show in Milan, guests entered into a backstage space built to expose all the BTS rituals of of hair , makeup and model dressers working diligently to prepare a cast of 60 faces for the show.

The show itself was staged in an arena like setting where at the centre, a carousel structure rotated 360 degrees. Each model stood still at their respective window where they donned garments which were partially inspired by pinafore dresses and school uniforms, and not long after, the entire production team took their bow as well.  

Michele :

“ I have always considered the fashion show as a magic event bursting with enchantment . A liturgical action that suspends the ordinary, loading it with an excess of intensity. A procession of epiphanies and expanded thoughts that settle into a different partition of the sensible….There’s something though, in this ceremony that usually stays buried; the struggle of the parturient that accompanies the tremble of creation; the mother’s womb where poetry blooms, from shape to shape. Therefore, I decided to unveil what lies behind the curtains. 

May the miracle of skilful hands and holding breath come out of the shadows. May the collective intelligence that takes care of gestation be visible, as shivers rage on. May that wild and crazy hive that I made my home have a throne. Because that is the home I worship; the blessed passage through which beauty comes out of its shell.”

Tags: Fashion, fw20, Gucci

“Japanese – Italian – Luxury” is how the Aries team sums up their most recent collaboration with Japanese fashion house Porter. But the collection is a little more subversive than such a description would suggest – as ever with Aries Arise’s approach, there’s a sense of playfulness too. 

“I wanted to include a trompe l’oeil design that would be a reference to classic luxury bags, this is how the gold chains idea developed. I specifically wanted the straps to be an ironic take on a handbag, to contrast the very utilitarian language of the Porter bag design.” explains Sofia Prantera of the approach to the collection. “Trying to achieve a balance between utilitarian and luxury is central to my design process and it creates constant tension between these opposing tenets.”

Shot by Clare Shilland, the campaign for Aries x Porter project taps into the new energy that accessories are bringing to style. They’re a material in themselves, building full looks from the outside in. For Prantera, the collaboration had personal roots. “Porter bags are unique, I have been buying their bags since my first trip to Japan in 2003. My first Porter bag was an iPod classic 1st Generation 5GB holder. Our Japanese distributor came up with the idea of collaborating on a bag collection which seemed like a dream come true. Porter bags are really iconic and unique. Porter have invented their own bag language and in some ways they are still pretty undiscovered outside of Japan.”

The collection is comprised of five unique styles, mixing original Porter silhouettes with an Aries twist. “I particularly like the Helmet bag, which is Porter’s signature shape, but I think the construction and materials lend themselves really well to small accessories so we added a 5th design, based on a 1990’s raver holster. This style is new and unique to our collaboration.”

Aries Arise x Porter is available to buy now.

Margaret Howell’s FW20 collection was crafted around the idea of a simple elegance. The designer showcased the collection yesterday in South Bank where she stripped back from the glitz and glamour and brought out the essential parts of her maison with class and minimalism.

From box pleat skirts, to knee high socks, to a simple white t-shirt dress which opened the show. Each look was stripped back to it’s core to embrace the true values of the British fashion house. Our photographer Olivia Lifungula gave us a BTS view of what went on at the Margaret Howell FW20 show. 

Tags: Fashion, Fashion Week, fw20, london fashion week, Margaret Howell, Womenswear

Following the buzz of their FW20 Menswear campaign earlier this month featuring Frank Ocean, Prada centred it’s recently released womenswear campaign around the theme of the brand’s fluid identity and flexibility. Shot by photographer Jamie Hawkesworth, the campaign was featured in a similar format to the menswear, playing upon the different types of characters that inspire and define the brand.

“The paradox and contradiction inherent to Prada make easy categorization or summarization impossible: Prada is simultaneously complex and simple, singular yet multi-faceted.”

Tags: campaign, Fashion, fw20, prada