Mood board: For A/W 2020, Martine Rose looked back on her career, her home and the label she set up in 2007. The clothes riffed on pieces from her archives and reminded us of her signature subversion of menswear archetypes: the bomber, the jean, the suit, the shirt. When Rose graduated from Middlesex University in 2002, setting up as a shirt label in 2005, the landscape of fashion was almost unrecognisable. Consider the rampant pace of consumption today, the rickety political and social backdrop, the revision of moral attitudes; clothes have to work within these times and help to shape them too. Rose is keen to remix her reminiscences. The exaggerated lines, twisted classics and tongue-in-cheek nu-wave logos were here redone for a new decade.
Best in show: Standout were the graphics and prints. For A/W 2020 they riffed on classic logos and bootleg merchandise appearing as a shiny jacquard emblazoned with place names close to Rose’s heart – Tottenham, Croydon, Clapham Junction and Tooting. New too was a rug-inspired print featuring much of the archive imagery she has created over the years, originally taken for look books or backstage posterity. The power of photography has radically shifted in an age bombarded by Instagram – revolutions have started with hi-resolution portraits, world events fractured into flat JPEGs. Rose’s lurex printed shirting had the sheen of the digital, the dazzle of prospect.
Scene setting: The show was staged inside a community primary school in Kentish Town, where the parquet floor was scuffed by decades of tiny feet. Rows of small plastic school chairs in emerald green or beer bottle brown lined the walls. Ceilings were decorated with paper animals and trees; a giant head made from ticker tape hovered above. Pinned to noticeboards were banners about slavery and notes about pupils’ goals for the future: ‘gender equality’ and ‘climate action’. The setting was a poignant reminder of how much now rests on young shoulders.
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Out of office: The Wallpaper* editors' picks of the weekThe London office of Wallpaper* had a very important visitor this week. Elsewhere, the team traverse a week at Frieze
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Alexandre de Betak on getting lost to find himself in LondonAs the world-renowned artistic director opens his first personal studio in London during Frieze Week, Alexandre de Betak reflects on leaving the fashion runway behind to explore light, space and creative freedom
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Step inside Faye Toogood's intimate cabinet of curiosities at PAD LondonFor PAD London 2025, (until 19 October) Faye Toogood presents The Magpie’s Nest with Friedman Benda
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‘Dirty Looks’ at the Barbican explores how fashion designers have found beauty in dirt and decayFrom garments buried in River Thames mud to those torn, creased and stained, ‘Dirty Looks’ is a testament to how ‘creativity and new artistic practices can come out of decay’, its curators tell Dal Chodha
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Tyler Mitchell’s London show explores the figure of the Black Dandy, ‘imagining what else masculinity could look like’Originally part of a visual essay to accompany the Met’s ‘Superfine’ 2025 Costume Institute exhibition, ‘Portrait of the Modern Dandy’ goes on display at Gagosian Burlington Arcade in London this week
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Inside Louis Vuitton’s Murakami London pop-up, a colourful cartoon wonderland with one-of-a-kind caféWallpaper* takes a tour of the Louis Vuitton x Murakami pop-up in London’s Soho, which celebrates the launch of a new ‘re-edition’ accessories collection spanning the greatest hits from the Japanese artist’s long-running collaboration with the house
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Get to know Issey Miyake’s innovative A-POC ABLE line as it arrives in the UKAs A-POC ABLE Issey Miyake launches in London this week, designer Yoshiyuki Miyamae gives Wallpaper* the lowdown on the experimental Issey Miyake offshoot
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Margaret Howell London Fashion Week Women's S/S 2019 -
London Fashion Week S/S 2023: Ahluwalia to Martine RoseThough slimmed-down, London Fashion Week nonetheless provided the moments of creative expression the city is known for – from Ahluwalia’s ode to Africa to Martine Rose’s much-anticipated runway return
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Discover these fashion brands at London Craft WeekDuring London Craft Week, fashion brands including Smythson, Bally and Serapian are hosting events across the capital
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Nicholas Daley's multicultural roots celebrated in London
