Mood board: Since Simone Rocha presented her first collection during London Fashion Week in 2010, the designer has been lauded for cultivating an aesthetic that combines the girlish with the gothic, the romantic with the quietly rebellious. Louise Bourgeois, and her powerful interpretations of femininity – explored in artworks such as the 1946-47 painting series Femme Maison – has long inspired the designer. Bourgeois’ artworks are found in Rocha’s New York City store, and last February she created an imagined working uniform for the artist.
At an earlier stage in her life Bourgeois was known to wear blue clothing when she felt melancholic and pink when she felt happy, and these tones featured more notably than usual in Rocha’s collection, in shapes like pretty puffball dresses and opera coats. Bourgeois’ deeply personal sculptures also often featured an array of undergarments and so here gauzy dresses with fleshy layers had a nuance of négligée, while in a new take on styling, silk bra tops were layered over Rocha’s signature dresses and coats.
Best in show: A series of colourful graphic prints recalled the abstract octagonal forms Bourgeois outlined on the female figure in her 2002 fabric sculpture The Woven Child and her 2006 fabric book ‘Dawn’.
Team work: The diverse casting in the show was stellar, and post event, Instagram was awash with images of Rocha’s models walking in the runway finale. Catwalk veterans Chloë Sevigny, Jade Parfitt and Lily Cole all walked the catwalk, as did the cherubic rising talent Tess McMillan.
Simone Rocha A/W 2019.
-
Dutch Design Awards 2025 honour a new generation of creativesRecognising the use of AI as a design tool, social commentary, and new materials, this year’s Dutch Design Awards go to Vera van der Burg; Willem de Haan; and Marten van Middelkoop and Joost Dingemans of Plasticiet
-
The return of Genghis Cohen: LA’s cult Chinese diner lives onThe 1980s Chinese-American landmark returns with red booths, neon nostalgia, and a fresh dose of Hollywood eccentricity
-
A monumental exhibition of French design revives the spirit of art deco for contemporary timesThe Galerie des Gobelins hosts the inaugural Salon des Nouveaux Ensembliers, a contemporary movement inspired by art deco’s grand traditions
-
‘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
-
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
-
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
-
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
