Roksanda A/W 2018

Scene setting: Roksanda Ilincic enlisted contemporary Swiss artist Caroline Denervaud to create a wistful, painterly set for her A/W 2018 show. Denervaud, who studied contemporary dance before becoming a painter and performance artist, creates lines and spontaneous blocks of colour based upon her exploration of movement and emotion. Slim canvases were hung like sails from the ceiling of the runway, giving the collection – which comprised fluid silk dresses, colour-blocked parkas and swing dresses with sculptural panels – a greater sense of movement.

Mood board: The notion of clothing as protection first emerged during New York Fashion Week and has carried through to London. At Roksanda, the sentiment was expressed through long quilted coats (elegant, rather than bulky), thick shearling jackets, oversized scarves and even blankets, which the models clutched onto tightly or threw over their shoulders as they descended the runway. Colours, however, veered towards the calmer end of the spectrum, as though to pacify the wearer – think pale yellow, camel and duck-egg blue.

Best in show: While the finale dresses exemplified Ilincic’s masterful use of silk, iridescent sequins and tufts of tulle, there was no denying the perennial elegance of her outerwear. The oversized camel coat that opened the show, for example, is something that many women would enjoy revisiting season after season.