Autumn Winter 2017
As I started to develop our first menswear line and the year progressed, the context of the design process changed as many of my references, such as Bowie, were starting to disappear. I felt like my youth and the subcultures I grew up with, my inspirations, were slipping away and I got incredibly nostalgic.
Presented in the same modular wardrobe as the women’s line, the first menswear collection speaks to this nostalgia for a past slipping away but also, and as importantly, I refocused with this new energy where I found fresh logic, rationale and a sense of balance.
The provenance of fabrications and manufacture is extremely important to me. The denim, knitwear and outerwear are made in London, shirts are produced in Italy from 30 washed times Egyptian cotton or two fold 100's end on end. The English Herringbone used on the ‘David Byrne Coat’ and the thornproof wool used on the balloon pant are both heritage fabrics from Abraham Moon in Yorkshire and the uniquely low tech performance of Ventile used across outerwear makes use of traditional menswear fabrications but used on progressive silhouettes to build a modern modular wardrobe.
The iconic pieces from the collection strongly identify with moments from the 1990s, specifically the David Byrne inspired coat, Natasha Kinski’s stand collar blouses oversized gaberdines and slacks (Margiela at Balanciaga), David Bowie pleat front pants and Talking Heads regular shirts. The collection has a narrative but also each individual style has a story.
NW