The four designers at this year’s Fashion East puzzled together four different types of uniforms on a scale of glamor, practicality and something in between.
Olly Shinder presented subverted masculinity in the way of worker shorts and short overalls with skirts and combat trousers with the aftermath of a hard stomp in the mud.
“I was questioning the times we’re living in. I just saw loads of s–t coming up on my phone, which I felt like everyone was looking at the same stuff. I was just trying to run away from it all,” said Shinder, a newcomer to Fashion East who graduated from Central Saint Martins last summer.
The casting was an ode to the community in which queer artists and friends of his walked.
Michael Stewart, the designer behind StandingGround, showed his last collection with the fashion collective. In the three seasons he’s been showing, his work has made it to the red carpet, from Salma Hayek, Sabrina Elba and Sophie Okonedo to Ellie Bamber.
His work sits between ancient and futuristic. He used engineered darts that turned into pleats for the pieces, forming a skeleton-like illusion.
Johanna Parv, the only female in the lineup, produced a simple yet practical collection that was all about a certain powerful female figure, one not far from the video character Lara Croft in the “Tomb Raider” franchise.
“I like to encourage women that they are like soldiers,” she said, adding that she had instructed the models to walk as if there was a fire in them.
Parv is already thinking about the next steps for her business. If the sales are in her favor, she wants to do more shows, an exhibition, a presentation and a pop-up for her community.
Designer A Sai Ta of Asai returned to the runway with 11 bouncy looks made in knit that criss-crossed all over each other in shades of purple, lime green, sherbert red and peach orange.
