Mood board: The fetishisation of clothing is prescient at fashion week. Just look to the industry’s seasonal obsession with a purse, a pocket, with what’s new. For A/W 2019 Kane had been thinking about human being’s obsessions with objects. The ‘rubberists’ – latex obsessives. The ‘looners’ – balloon addicts. The people with culturally unacceptable compulsions. Kane’s clothing explores the boundaries of taste. Sexuality and secrecy explored using leather, lace and ladylike embellishment. Metallics, fuchsia, forest green and scarlet were showcased for A/W 2019, within a range of naughty/naive, sensual/saccharine silhouettes. This meant flouncy cupcake hemline skirts, rubber lapel overcoats, colourful balloon print dresses and shirts draped with crystals. Which piece will be your obsession?
Finishing touches: Kane’s clothing has a greatest hits element. His fans note nods to previous collections: a buckle, a shred of neon lace, a botanical pattern. His A/W 2011 collection featured plastic inserts filled with colourful liquids, and this detail was seen for A/W 2019 in squidgy fluid-filled collars and pocket flaps. There was something medicinal about the accompanying clutches, which resembled IV bags, or long earrings, hanging like test tubes filled with a sticky substance. ‘Fluidity,’ Kane said of their meaning. ‘It’s alright to be as fluid as you want.’
Best in show: The ‘More Joy’ T-shirts which accompanied Kane’s A/W 2018 collection have been a hit, and no doubt his balloon emblazoned ‘Looner’ T-shirt will attract fans. Those gooey accessories will also be on the wish list of Kane customers old and new. Elsewhere, rubber detail tuxedo jackets bought eroticism to eveningwear, while a series of loose dresses draped with gems had a Delphic glamour. §
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In the frame: Layer is a new high-tech platform for displaying unique pieces of generative artA museum-grade canvas renders digital art with spectacular precision, cutting-edge tech and exacting industrial design
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Chrome tableware to make your dining setup shineOnce a hallmark of industrial and midcentury design, chrome is shining once again. The latest expression? Metallic dinner-, drink- and serveware that embody sophistication
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Serenity radiates through this Mexican home, set between two ravinesOn the cusp of a lakeside town, Mexican home Casa el Espino is a single-storey residence by Soler Orozco Arquitectos (SOA)
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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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London Fashion Week S/S 2022: eight important insights to know nowFashion brands are back with a bang in The Big Smoke. Here’s everything you need to know from London Fashion Week S/S 2022
