On the first day of London Fashion Week Men’s, Phoebe English showcased her capsule collection for men as the week’s first presentation. The autumn/winter 2017 looks were put in context with the reenactment of household chores.
Phoebe English is a British designer who explores surface and the relationaship between body and movement in her designs. While she once said her womenswear garments were an “extension of her imagination”, her menswear has been, since the start of the capsule Man collections for the spring/summer 2016 season, inspired by the men surrounding her. Initially an observation of her boyfriend’s way of dressing, she has now expanded the exploration to all creative men around her.
With her presentation, Phoebe English transported us away from the fuss of fashion week to put us into a serene environment. 8 models were all calmly enacting their chores, from ironing to hovering the floor. The fact that they were all in movement supported the brand’s ethos and underlined the practicality of the garments, whose loose cuts allowed such motion. Wide fits in shirts and trousers as well as hoodies were paired with smarter coats and buttoned shirts to translate a relaxed yet neat masculinity.
The colour palette ranged from navy blue to black and khaki to taupe. With a use of traditional colours and silhouettes, Phoebe English experimented with fabrics and cuts to offer interesting effects in layered outfits. By mixing velvet, corduroys and waxed cottons, she presented visually pleasing textures. Complex in its technique – most of the time coming from forgotten craft – the designer’s collection was interesting in pleats and the lines it created – lines that were then transferred into the shirts’ patterns.
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Phoebe English presented an autumn/winter 2017 collection that was complex in its fabrics, textures and details to allow for seemingly traditional silhouettes to be challenged. The men that she designs for – and she was inspired by – are not only smart in their styles but also in their choice of garments. And, above all, she showed us how men at work could look amazing.
Der Beitrag PHOEBE ENGLISH MAN | London Fashion Week Men’s A/W 2017 erschien zuerst auf SUPERIOR MAGAZINE.