London – In a runway show of 15 daring and bold collections at Central Saint Martins, two stood out as LS:N Global favourites.
Beth Postle, one of the winners of the evening’s L’Oréal Professionnel Creative Award, sent models down the runway in oversized white PVC smocks covered in bold, colourful squiggles that contrasted with the snug jumpsuits, and fishnet body stockings that added sex appeal to Postle’s artsy girl. She found inspiration from Jean Dubuffet, the French painter who formulated the notion of Art Brut, or raw art. We saw shades of our Meaningless Marks design direction, which explores how designers are using scribbles and abstract lines to create vivid and visceral clothing.
Our other favourite of the evening was Hayley Grundmann, who took the idea of Tasteful Waste to an elevated, fashionable level. While our microtrend examined how brands are re-using waste in thoughtful ways, Grundmann put it straight onto her clothing. She used traditional techniques such as knitting, but with rubbish bags and foams, to create outlandish shapes and textures.
Both were creative in the use of volume, material and technique, and the result was clothing that is refreshingly new and risk-taking.