Fashion Capital - Alternative Fashion Week

Alternative Fashion Week

Last week saw the return of Alternative Fashion Week based at fashionista heaven Spitalfields Market.

Alternative Arts presented East London's major fashion event where a fresh crop of new designers showcased their innovative collections to an audience of press, public and the fashion industry. Over sixty young designers were selected to present their collections on the well publicised platform, ranging from independent designers aiming to establish their label to recent fashion and textile graduates.

Throughout the week twelve different designer collections took to the catwalk each day, with new models sashaying up and down to a live accompaniment of contemporary jazz from The Groove Collection.

A major theme of the week was original and recycled textiles with a strong no fur policy in support of the ‘No Fur Trade Campaign'

Fashion Capital was there on Day four to see what this year's successful applicants had to offer.

Opening the catwalk show were students from Kensington and Chelsea College with an ethereal two-part collection. The first rather regal and Edwardian influenced creations worn by models brushed with gold body paint. The second, duo Sally Harper and Amanda Matthews explored interpretations of the Little Black Dress worn with delicate headwear.

Kerry Fewster created a handmade menswear and womenswear collection entitled ‘Aesthetic Victim'. Accessorised with umbrellas, the set of deconstructed women's' dresses and checked short-sleeved shirts for men made the collection very ‘street'.

Fusing classic tailoring and innovative modern silhouettes Claire Madelin's collection ‘Multiple Rearrangement' showed origami style tunics in a muted palette of soft pink's, grey's and white. Her highlight an oversized laser cut snowflake dress with exquisite detail.

Overall the collections were well constructed and innovative. The students and designers certainly embraced the original and recycled textiles theme. Garments were deconstructed and reworked into unique outfits, old T Shirts were crocheted into new garments and even kitchen utensils were explored. A highly inventive and varied approach to modern fashion.

Alternative Arts is a publicly funded arts organisation presenting fashion as an exciting and original art form and supporting fresh talent by producing and directing Alternative Fashion Week at no charge to the designers.

Jenni Sutton

Images by Jirat Sarmkasat

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