The creative talents at Central Saint Martins bestowed on us their annual gift of the graduation collections. Inventive and experimental, the designers here placed expression at the forefront of their design ethos before all else. The breathtaking result was an absolute delight, submerging the audience in a well-crafted fashion phantasmagoria.
First up was Imogen Wright, whose take on womenswear was very much in line with Anna Wintour’s ideal Vogue woman: assertive, proud, and very much in control. Office pinstripes and men’s shirting were made feminine with precise tailoring, flared A-line shapes and curved hems. A matching Glen checked ensemble with tie-front trousers work perfectly for fans of both Man Repeller and Tilda Swinton.
Joanna Melbourne and her Technicolor line-up then followed suit. Lustrous silk frocks in saturated hues like acid green and goldenrod were red-carpet ready. Fluttering with every step, Melbourne mirrored the energy of her color palette with dynamic cuts and extensive draping. Cloistered necklines were recurring, an apt sense of structure amid her defining fluid shapes.
Kota Gushiken was a recipient of the Inditex Scholarship for his maximal take on knitwear. There was quite the amount of personality in Gushiken’s looks: each one the story of a different character. From the mic-ready MTV starlet to the anxiety-ridden homebody, Gushiken’s sense of composition in both color and form were the most praiseworthy. His standout look was akin to a Chanel jacket done mixed with Incan tapestry weaving.
Philip Ellis, who originally started in the industry as a model himself, expressed the vivacity of London’s youth scene. Drawing from quilted puffer jackets, prints of fruits and flora, as well as snappy quotes, Ellis’s skill is in layering. A hodge-podge of proportions, it’s with a keen eye he finds a sense of ordered chaos through the sweatshirts and ribbed legwear.
A definite one-to-watch, Sergiy Grechyshkin , won the LVMH Scholarship Grand Prize this year for his Burton-esque fantasy. Immediately, it’s the Ukrainian designer’s mouthpieces that grab the attention: bobbing along the runway, they’re oddly disquieting. His designs emphasized sheer fabrics like lace, ovoid shapes, and soft skirting.
Loose and casual, Susang Hwang took a comparatively wearable approach to menswear. Deconstructed suiting was paired with leather and lace. One leather jacket distressed to mottled perfection. Oversized cuff-like structures wrapped themselves around the waist: familiar in appearance but exaggerated beyond immediate recognition.
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