With the afternoon sun peering softly through the corrugated plastic roof of a tin shed within the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the muted light echoed that of the beachside town of St Ives on England's dramatic Cornish coast. This was the starting point for Paula Gerbase's A/W collection. Here, the former Savile Row designer was inspired by the remote fishing village's community of 20th century artists, including the modernist curvatures of former resident sculptor, Barbara Hepworth. The result was a loosening of Gerbase's utilitarian design signatures, appropriating artists' smocks into swinging tunics and caped coats, while her pants widened to meet fisherman proportions, as funnel necks were inserted into shirting. In short, these were clothes that extended a creative freedom in their loosened proportions. Gerbase may have headed menswear label Kilgour for five years, but in this instance her technical skill-set and sophisticated fabric knowledge (she even mounted the season's star samples into her show notes), enabled the designer to cut an effortless ease into her silhouettes, seen through a raglan 'sweatshirt' of marbled boucle alpaca, or one navy look fashioned entirely from waterproof polyester, engineered to give a smocked appearance. Subtle nautical cues continued with her models' salt-tousled hair, and ribbed jumpers, modelled after traditional merino fishing knits. A naturalist mood that also seeped into her colour palate of navy, white, moss, plum and slate grey - all hues apparently well represented in the works of artists' of that region and era.
Photography: Jason Lloyd-Evans
-
Meet Studio Zewde, the Harlem practice that's creating landscapes 'rooted in cultural narratives, ecology and memory'Ahead of a string of prestigious project openings, we check in with firm founder Sara Zewde
-
A whopping 92% of this slick London office fit-out came from reused materialsCould PLP Architecture's new workspace provide a new model for circularity?
-
How will future car interiors take shape? London studio NewTerritory has a vision for automotive designDesign studio NewTerritory has set up a new automotive division to explore the future of car interiors. We interrogate the team
-
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
-
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
-
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
-
Discover these fashion brands at London Craft WeekDuring London Craft Week, fashion brands including Smythson, Bally and Serapian are hosting events across the capital
-
Nicholas Daley's multicultural roots celebrated in London -
V&A spotlights the sartorial and social significance of the kimonoFor the latest endeavour of London's Victoria and Albert Museum, Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk explores the evolution of the iconic Japanese garment
-
Erdem A/W 2020 London Fashion Week Women's
