Alleyne Jawara
It was refreshing to witness a generation of new designers more focused on technique than styling at Fashion East, the umbrella showcase launched by Lulu Kennedy. Their methods may be in flux, but at the very least, they're approaching fashion from a dressmaking standpoint rather than a strictly theatrical one. Take, for example, Jawara Alleyne, who, following a static presentation last season, gave his debut runway show at Fashion East. He used his particularly Caribbean relationship with the sun as the underpinning for both the technical and philosophical parts of his collection, having been born in Jamaica and raised in the Cayman Islands.
"The sun was mentioned a lot when I was growing up in the Caribbean. During a sneak peek, he mused, "What does that mean for me as someone who now lives in London?" Alleyne draped his materials as if they'd been roasted by the sun, and he made repurposed old clothing and deadstock fabrics look aged by too much sunlight. He referred to those environmentally friendly decisions as "circular," and he applied the concept of circularity to the way he cut his collection as well. He made circular incisions on old T-shirts and safety-pinned squares of cloth into circular shapes that twisted around the torso. He also toyed with the draping and pulling of skirts.
Alleyne explained, "I'm interested with presenting something that feels like it has a life." "Gravity, the way clothes hang, how clothing ages..." His devotion resulted in a raw, slashed-up mentality that may get a little too recycled; a little too far-reaching and messy at times. Rome, on the other hand, was not constructed in a day. Alleyne's technique may have progressed to a new level by the time he walks the Fashion East runway for the second time.
Chet Lo is a character in the film Chet Lo
Chet Lo continued his exploration of the spiky fishing wire knitwear approach that gained him the spot in the first place for his second runway exhibition at Fashion East. If done correctly, a young designer might riff on the same idea for several seasons, and in this case, repetition didn't engender monotony. Lo's icy, saccharine, spiky interpretations of little dresses and shrunken interpretations of wardrobe staples like the puffer and the miniskirt were magnetic in a way that echoed how some of us feel about parts of the Euphoria wardrobe department: it may have a bad taste, but it's oddly moreish, like synthetic candy.
"Last season, everything was really sheer, and I want to make sure that girls feel comfortable wearing my garments," Lo said of the collection's opaque knitwear. He approached the task via the lens of skiwear, or at least a fantasy of it, thinking how the girl from his designer fantasies would dress for après-ski. "I wanted to go very cold and icy," he remarked, indicating to his tactile power gear, which included earmuffs, snow bunny bags, and puffer guards (fingerless for phone use).
The American designer drew inspiration from childhood ski visits to Canada, where his parents "would sip Champagne in a jacuzzi on a mountain slope," creating an impossible-to-wear winter style that never got old. He joked, "A hoe never gets cold," emphasising how he wants his consumer to feel really beautiful. "It's like being on the tube and everyone is staring at you, but you know it's because you look so wonderful," Lo explained. Aside from the faux-furry Yetis and revealing thermal skiwear, his sophomore proposition was based on a serious business approach. "Everyone was like, 'It's really clubby, it's extremely dance-y," he said last season. "However, I'd like you to wear it to the grocery store as well."
Davis, Maximilian
On Sunday evening, Maximilian Davis, the current prodigy of Fashion East, had his final bow on the runway of Lulu Kennedy's non-profit incubator, where he was just nominated for the LVMH Prize (and is expected to win). His show was full of the sleek, sexed-up Y2K modernism that has pushed him into Kim Kardashian's, Rihanna's, and Dua Lipa's wardrobes. Davis, though, is not cutting any shortcuts just because his star is rising. From his noble tailoring (nipped waists, broad shoulders) to his draped dresses and skirt sets (some invisibly corseted, others pulled erotically around the body), and the outerwear he sensualizes like a skimpy cocktail number, he used every look in the collection to show a different side to his technical skill.
If Davis's art makes people feel something, it's because it's based on deep, intimate experiences. In a sneak peek, he described how, when he was seven years old, his parents moved the family from Manchester to a property in Shropshire. Following the suicide of one of the previous owners, his parents became persuaded that the house was haunted. "They truly turned to God during this period and tried to find a sense of belief, guidance, and strength." My family and I, along with a local priest, would go around the house once a week blessing it with holy water," Davis remembered. "When I got home from school, there was always holy water and rosary beads on my bedside table."
Every day, he drove nearly two hours to Catholic school, passing small-town biker groups along the way. He went to mass every Friday and Sunday, appreciating the biblical Renaissance paintings on the church walls. Davis' world was made up of uniforms, from the motorcyclists to his own schoolboy attire to the church's and his Trinidadian businessman father's pinstripe fitted suits when he returned home from work. All of these aspects embroidered the inspired tapestry that made up his collection, which was joined by his current study of 19th century Caribbean equestrian-wear.
Davis hand-painted Christ's thorns on a slinky white gown, fetishistically wrapped biker jacket buckles around skin-tight shapes, stacked box-pleat riding jackets with quilted liners, and constructed a luscious brown country trench coat with black epaulettes like an evening gown. Every line and curve was infused with his renegade brand of sex appeal. "Going to a Catholic school and being taught that sex is evil, and you shouldn't be interested in it, and being gay is not anything..." he paused to explain. "It makes you want to go more into it, and it gives you this perverted side, to put it that way." Davis continues to pray today. His parents, on the other hand, are unexpectedly accepting of his chosen route."They both studied fashion design, but neither of them went on to work in the industry," he explained. "They were aware that this was something I wanted to accomplish, and they guided and supported me throughout."