It was, in a way, rather touching (and perhaps inevitable) that London's newest young-designer initiative should end up feeling just like the old days—mammoth boozy party in a multistory car park, loud contingents of gate-crashing fashion students, and a group of recent graduates' clothes on the runway.
But this is the 21st century, not the Ab Fab eighties, and the event was Fashion Fringe, the culmination of a nationwide competition to find the next generation of talent, instigated by veteran London Sunday Times critic Colin McDowell. Fearing a decline in the excitement about London fashion—not to mention the perennial lack of funding—he corralled serious sponsorship from Red Bull and others, and wound up with £10,000 to bestow on the winner.
In the event, a panel including Burberry CEO Rose Marie Bravo, British Vogue editor Alexandra Schulman, Hamish Bowles of American Vogue, and Giles Deacon chose the showstopper of the evening as winner—a collection by Basso & Brooke with hugely inflated leg-o'-mutton shoulders, nipped-in waists, and draped pants, all smothered in kitsch yellow-brown-green seventies prints. There were inevitable comparisons with Giles Deacon himself, not to mention a scintilla of Victor & Rolf.
Other contenders, like Sinhastanic, displayed more than a passing resemblance to Rick Owens in their raw-edged leather and drapey jersey shapes; Rubecksen Yamanaka, meanwhile, is already in business. It all added up to something both infuriating and funny that, if McDowell has anything to do with it, will become an annual event. | |
Full list of designers:
A.F. Vandevorst, Akris, Alberta Ferretti, Alessandro Dell'Acqua, Alexander McQueen, Alistair Carr, Anna Molinari, As Four, Ashish Gupta, Balenciaga, BCBG Max Azria, Behnaz Sarafpour, Bill Blass, Bottega Veneta, Boudicca, Buddhist Punk, Burberry Prorsum, Calvin Klein, Carolina Herrera, Celine, Chado Ralph Rucci, Chanel, Charles Anastase, Chloé, Christian Dior, Christian Lacroix, Clements Ribeiro, Comme des Garçons, Costume National, D & G, Daryl Kerrigan, Derek Lam, Diane von Furstenberg, DKNY, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, Donatella Versace, Donna Karan, Doo.Ri, Dries Van Noten, Dsquared, Eley Kishimoto, Eleykishimoto Ellesse, Emanuel Ungaro, Emma Cook, Emporio Armani, Etro, Fashion Fringe, Fendi, GARDEM, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, Helmut Lang, Hussein Chalayan, Imitation of Christ, J. Mendel, Jean Paul Gaultier, Jeffrey Chow, Jil Sander, Jill Stuart, John Galliano, Junya Watanabe, Kenneth Cole, Lagerfeld Gallery, Lanvin, Miguel Adrover, Missoni, Miu Miu, Monique Lhuillier, Moschino, Narciso Rodriguez, Nina Ricci, Oscar de la Renta, Perry Ellis Women, Peter Jensen, Peter Som, Phi, Pollini, Prada, Preen, Proenza Schouler, Ralph Lauren, Richard Chai, Rick Owens, Roberto Cavalli, Roberto Menichetti, Rochas, Sebastian Pons, Sonia Rykiel, Sophia Kokosalaki, Stella McCartney, Thakoon, Tommy Hilfiger, Tuleh, Undercover, United Bamboo, Véronique Branquinho, Valentino, Vera Wang, Viktor & Rolf, VPL, Wolfgang Joop, Yohji Yamamoto, YSL Rive Gauche,
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