‘BOYS CLUB’ – new menswear graduates
SLASHSTROKE picks it’s class of 2011.
Gaining acclaim for her work even before graduating, YASMIN BAWA’s sensitive attitude to textiles is rightfully gaining her fans. Giacomo Balla’s Futurist Manifesto of Men’s Clothing which aimed to steer men away from conservative suiting, in turn steered Bawa’s collection of total look geometric prints and thoughtful detailing into a sophisticated and modern manifesto of her own. www.yasminbawa.com
RASHA SWAIS twisted her research of 1960’s Mod and Skinhead culture into a new dimension – by throwing in the vibrant mismatch styling of Japanese street wear. Bleached out corduroys and rogue-ish textures formed a look the Middlesex graduate calls ‘Smart and Dandy’. Continuing her passionate and personal journey into menswear, Swais is currently working on a capsule collection for new online store VV Vintage. www.withlovefromrasha.blogspot.com
LUCIE SUTTON’s BA collection celebrated the ‘hype surrounding the last year of Central Saint Martins College at Charing Cross Road’. Studying the 1950’s Americana photographs of Richard Heeps led her to weave the campus’ initials into embroidered logos on varsity styled biker jackets. Her layered prints reflected the leftovers of the college’s well-worn screen-printing tables – and gave the campus it’s very own farewell catwalk exit. luciesutton@gmail.com
Taking inspiration from her country’s renowned porcelain, Chinese designer KATHY LAM presented a textural collection of monochrome looks in blue and white. Attempting to ‘break oriental traditions’ she juxtaposed this delicate starting point with nonchalant proportions influenced by grunge rock. Over-sized and boxy shapes were the perfect foundation for her watery palette, graphic contours and artistic paint strokes. www.kathylam.info
Westminster graduate ALICE CARVILL-WHITE’s collection came from abstract beginnings: both flat pack furniture and shipment packaging informed her design process. Her unique vision married seemingly contrasting aesthetics: natural materials and man-made techniques. Hence a standout pair of fur shorts were laser-cut with a wood-grain pattern and, when nestled under a canvas overcoat with detachable fur arms, created a statement oddly luxurious and economical. www.alicecarvillwhite.co.uk
Exploring the ‘connection between man and machine’ led to the digital designs of NATHANIEL THOMPSON’s BA collection at Middlesex. Sporty looks based on the 1982 film Tron had their key component in circuitry like prints that ‘took months to develop’. Pursuing his interest in how technology and fashion influence another, Thompson has suitably landed a design assistant role at Puma by Hussein Chalayan.www.nathaniel-thompson.com
‘America’s Top Most Wanted’ titled PIPPA FAIRHALL’s Ravensbourne collection, her genius concept that focused on the attire of notorious criminals such as Osama Bin Laden and murderer Glenn Stewart Godwin. Silhouettes mixed the layering of middle eastern militants, the swagger of street gangs, and the strictness of prison attire to winning effect. Nothing evidenced this further than her four armed, hi-viz orange and denim jumpsuit. www.artsthread.com/p/pippafairhall
NANNA REIN’s voluminous knitwear and heavyweight outerwear would be right at home on the Polar expeditions of her collection’s muse, early 20th Century Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. Her mature collection showed an authenticity inspired by her Scandinavian roots; featuring colours adapted from the ‘desolate’ Antartic landscape and even wool sourced from a specific breed of native sheep.www.nannarein.com
Photography: David Poole.
Illustration + Fashion Coordination : Alex Mein.
Fashion Assistant: Danielle Ingemann.
Thanks to all the designers.
Models: VAL at M and P, Oriol and Ben at Nevs, Charlie, Emannuel and Max T at Premier.
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