Fashion East February 2018: Get To Know The Stars Of Fashion's Future
Fashion East, the non-profit organisation that heralded Marques'Almeida, Wales Bonner, Ashley Williams, Mary Katrantzou (and many, many more!), showed us who we'll be wearing come Autumn/ Winter 2018. Here are the three designers - and the super-stylist special guest - to get excited about.
1) ASAI
A year since first showing with the support of Fashion East, London born and based A Sai Tai has made a name for himself with his statement shredded knits. The Central Saint Martins grad cut his teeth at The Row, before being headhunted by Kanye West before he'd even finished studying.
Three collections into his career, and the intricately woven trailing textiles we've grown used to have developed into twisted-tip brights, with bold waxed jackets and trench coats. This season Asai, the label, asserted those early-established codes and confirmed that its "anti-perfection" aesthetic isn't mutually exclusive with luxury. How long until we see those shredded-denim boots on Riri?
2) Charlotte Knowles
Acne Studios, Helmut Lang, McQueen - three of the hit-brands Charlotte Knowles worked with before graduating from Central Saint Martins in 2017. The London based designer's eponymous label, launched last year with her partner Alexandre Arsenault, is already stocked internationally by Opening Ceremony, and it's clear as to why her ascent has been so speedy.
This is a confident sexuality, with transparent mesh dresses, bralets and slips designed for women - sexy in what they reveal, but with skewed collars and prints that don't conform with a cliched view of "hot." It's also practical with fanny-pack skirts and concealed pockets, and what Charlotte calls "waprons" - a pull-on hoodie-type pouch and fur muff hybrid. So we guess they're warm and functional. Charlotte's one to watch, for sure.
3) Supriya Lele
How do we navigate our cultural identity as second-generation immigrants, born-and-raised British? Particularly now, when we question Britishness as a nation, plotting our way through Brexit.
Royal College of Art graduate, Supriya Lele is asking the same question, indirectly, by exploring her own Indian heritage, looking to dress as a way of engaging with her cultural past. We're often presented with "either/ or" questions (are we "this" or "that", "in" or "out") but Supriya's pieces are the perfect microcosm for assimilation, which is what makes her work so relevant. With her work you see the draping of traditional Saris mixed with sportswear and utility. There's also the teal and powder pink from Indian signage, mixed with acrid yellows and tough leathers that mix the classicism of traditional South Asian dress with tropes seen on the streets of London.
"I used to be a drummer in my teenage years," Supriya says, and you see that with the sense of cool carried through in the styling, with a softer femininity that comes through with the fabrics - silk-satin-mixes that drape nonchalantly over hands in pockets, falling easily at the shoulder.
This was Supriya's final outing with Fashion East, and it shows she means business.
4) Symonds Pearmain
If you've ever picked up a fashion mag, seen any campaign, or any show, you'll have seen the work of Max Pearmain, whether you know it or not. This super-stylist has had a hand in the work of fashion's biggest labels, from Natacha Ramsay-Levi's Chloé, to Calvin Klein, Joseph and Acne Studios (to name just a few). That's why fashion's most talked-about models also walked his show, opening with Edie Campbell and Lily McMenamy.
Having studied at the Slade School of Fine Art, the former fashion editor has a cerebral take on fashion, with a nuanced take on the line between creativity and commerce. This was his fourth collection with artist Anthony Symonds, under the double-barrel moniker Symonds Pearmain, but the duo's first time showing as guests of Fashion East.
Despite the pair's deep roots in art, this was about fashion. "We wanted people to see that this is fashion - that they can engage with these as clothes," said Max backstage at the show. And everything from the outsized tapestry totes to the logo-manic t-shirts proved that. Because this was fashion - from every point of engagement. From the intricate craft expected of ateliers in Paris, to the branded merch associated with streetwear. Meaning, wearable as it is, that doesn't mean the clothes are devoid of concept. Hat-tip to Symonds Pearmain for the thinking-woman's fashion.
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