Fashion East

Maximilian

The term ‘hot girl summer’ has been thrown around a lot over the past few months of post-lockdown sunshine and re-opened borders. But if you asked the young talents at Fashion East—which nurtures the designers of the future—sexy, scanty, sizzling fashion isn’t simply about revenge travel and thirsty selfies. It’s a far more significant symptom of current youth mentality. Maximilian Davis, who presented his third collection under the umbrella showcase (and his first-ever runway show, looks 1 to 24), referred to his swimwear-inspired collection as “pose-wear”—the kind you strut around in by the pool—but founded it in poetic references from his family’s native Trinidad.

Pictures taken by the nature photographer Nadia Huggins of teenagers swimming in the Caribbean evoked memories of Davis’s own childhood holidays in Trinidad. “The sensuality and freedom these kids had reminded me of carnival, which is an expression of freedom,” he explained during a preview. It shaped a collection suspended between the properties of swimwear and the ‘sailor mas’ costumes of Trinidad’s carnivals, projected in the image of Bond girls such as Ursula Andress, who carried that torch in Dr. No, which was filmed in the Caribbean.

Davis employed his water sports motif in sensual tailoring sculpted like wetsuits but constructed in fine crêpe, and in sailor jackets that played with the eternal allure of men (and women) in naval uniform. Slithery, slippery, seedy red nylon fabrics and some highly subversive devoré—the latter a nod to his grandmother’s sofas in Manchester—added a certain mischief to the proceedings, albeit through Davis’s persistently glamorous lens. Asked about the sex appeal of his work, he said that his take on post-pandemic déshabillé is about a new empowerment. “As a Black person, there’s a lot I have to go through day-to-day, and it makes me more confident with who I am. I think confidence is part of sexiness, if that makes sense.” —Anders Christian Madsen

Chet Lo

If the monumental events of the pandemic—and the summer of 2020 in particular—have fuelled a freedom of expression conveyed in a stripped-to-the-core, flaunt-what-you-got take on dressing, Fashion East newcomer Chet Lo (looks 25 to 38) is on the right path. The American designer, who interned for John Galliano at Maison Margiela and has already dressed Kylie Jenner, showed a collection devoted to “unabashed sexuality,” as his press notes would have it. He expressed that through a spiky, sheer fishing wire knitwear technique applied to aquatic fluorescent vacation-wear and some rather fabulous bags and sandals that had to make you smile. Lo had named a skirt built around a knitted lifebuoy “the life-saver skirt,” which sounded ever-so appropriate for the current climate.

But his work felt most relevant in its ability to jump through a screen: these were generational clothes, by a generational designer, for the digital generation. “I am a child of technology. Everything I do, I instantly wear and take a picture. That’s where my lens is,” he said. “I do oftentimes consider everything digitally. I discovered my aesthetic through quarantine, so it changed how I design.” That’s a reminder of how the last 18 months have forever impacted the youth that will form fashion’s future. For that digital generation of designers, self-expression now seems synonymous with amplification: sexier, sassier, braver, and entirely unapologetic. —Anders Christian Madsen

Jawara Alleyne

“I had to have fun this time,” said Jawara Alleyne of his sophomore collection with Fashion East, looks 39 to 52. “The first one was so stressful—that’s not how I want to approach my journey in fashion; it’s something I have to enjoy.” The pleasure he speaks of translated into the clothes for spring, which were shown at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London. The space was buzzing with thumping sounds from a DJ playing a set, as models adorned in Alleyne’s creations were dispersed and placed on top of mannequins that he’d dressed, too.

Continuing to challenge gender roles, proportions and sizing, the Jamaican-Caymanian designer also wanted to retain his culture and heritage as a central focus in his work. This season, the fabrications were more complex and the silhouettes less fluid: it felt more stiff and intentional. Instead of using only silks and jerseys, as he has done previously, Alleyne explored fabric manipulation with harder materials like cotton, Tyvek, leather and denim. The rebellious undercurrent of his brand’s spirit was further amplified in the details of safety pins, knots and cutouts. “It was about extending my story of draping into new spaces,” he said. “But I wanted to be more playful with other techniques, too.”

Alleyne, who graduated from the Central Saint Martins MA last year, made an endearing point of having created the entire collection on the floor of his bedroom, something a lot of young designers have to do at the onset of their careers. But something tells me this won’t be for much longer in his case. —Alex Kessler

Goom Heo

Despite having lived in London for nearly a decade, earlier in the year and amidst the rise of anti-Asian hate crimes globally, Goom Heo decided to head back to Korea to focus on work. “I’m not trying to be political,” she said over Zoom at 2AM from Seoul. “I just, all of sudden, felt uncomfortable and needed a change.” It was this anxiety, though, which spurred initial inspiration for spring, but, in classic Goom style, there had to be an off-kilter contrast.

“Chaotic, but in a zone of comfort,” is how the designer described the mood of this season, looks 53 to 71. “It’s where my mental state was when I started the collection.” This juxtaposition was reflected in the clothes: gathered and knotted drapes that wrapped around the body in a frenzied manner were made of stretch jersey and layered with soft sugarcane-suede pieces. Washed indigo blue denim that deceptively emulated a trompe l’oeil effect effect wrapped up and around the legs. Clever cut-outs that mimicked her trademark eye details were across hips, too. What really stood out, though, were the digitally printed, pleated knit bodycon looks. The palette was predominantly dark shades of grays and purple, with bursts of red, green and blue, not veering too far from familiar territory.

Although Heo, who graduated from Central Saint Martins M.A. in 2019, has become known for a subversive take on men’s fashion, after the success of introducing womenswear last season she opted to continue doing more this time. “I had confidence from how well it was received, so it felt natural to keep going,” she said. “But I wasn’t really thinking of gender when I was designing.” —Alex Kessler

HRH

This season Hannah was inspired by swimwear. The British designer, who prefers to go by her first name, looked to the uniformity and pageantry of the competitive side of swimming. Through her core medium of accessories and via a Y2K lens, she delivered pieces that felt like literal prizes. Even the metallic bags made of pig-skin leather were the colors of medals: bronze, silver and gold. “I'm quite a magpie when it comes to objects, so I wanted everything to feel like precious talismans,” she said.

There was an introduction to actual swimwear, too—from one-piece looks with cut-outs to bikini separates featuring elasticated edges that are cleverly applied to be inclusive of sizing. She also showed large, frameless sunglasses, some of which had diamanté studs across the middle. “It’s very JLo 2001, no?” Hannah said. Let’s not forget the bonnets made out of shiny, durable nylon that can also be worn as a neckerchief or simply a bandeau top. Everything had decorative hardware logo details, further establishing HRH’s growing brand identity.

With her spring offering, looks 72 to 81 the designer wanted to bring more than just accessories, but rather, a complete look. What’s next for HRH? It’s too early to tell, but expect development on signatures that are becoming increasingly recognizable. —Alex Kessler