McQueen And McCartney Gear Up For London Fashion Week

New York hands the torch to London as its edition of Fashion Week kicks off today

After yesterday’s conclusion of New York Fashion Week, London Fashion Week has kicked off today with British designers Antoni & Alison, who presented their new collection of bold, colourful prints, in the first of many of catwalk shows planned for the next six days.

London Fashion Week has massively upped its game this year, attracting some of the industry’s biggest stars. Stella McCartney, for example, will be holding her first stand-alone show in London since graduation, while there will also be a debut show by McQ – the affordable range from the Sarah Burton-led Alexander McQueen fashion house, set to be released in a London flagship store in a few months. ‘There is great excitement about (McQ) because of Sarah Burton’s success dressing Katherine Middleton for the royal wedding last year’, explained Caroline Rush, CEO of the British Fashion Council, organisers of LFW. ‘There is fantastic talent as always, and the international audience is looking very strong’ she added.

McCartney’s smart, minimalist collections usually exclusively show at Paris Fashion Week for a decade, is also attracting a lot of attention, thanks to her recently being named the creative director of the UK Olympic team’s competitive clothing for this summer’s London Games. This year will also mark the release of her new perfume and the opening of a second store in spring.

Buyers scouting for new talent will be out in their numbers. ‘We will be keeping a close eye on British designers Christopher Kane, Jonathan Saunders and Mary Katrantzou, whose designs are proving increasingly popular’, explained Jo Hooper, chief buyer at John Lewis’ womenswear department: ‘London tends to be edgier than New York, which shows more classic cuts’, she added.

Follow ArtLyst on Twitter for breaking art news and latest exhibition reviews

 

Tags

, , ,