LONDON FASHION WEEK: JW ANDERSON

Big changes were foreshadowed at J.W. Anderson‘s spring-summer 2018 collection minutes before the show kicked-off. No claustrophobic corridor venue as per previous shows, but a circular runway with an art installation in the heart of it – thankfully a change. The clothes’ aesthetic was far different, too. Criss-cross bungee cord and textured linens gave the collection a… leisure-y attitude. Wait, leisure at J.W. Anderson, where it’s always about the explosion of off-beat references, complexity and radiant colours? Yes, that’s happening. Kitchen implements on the catwalk and tablecloth-inspired homespun textiles with the brand’s logo – that was Jonathan Anderson‘s appreciation of ‘at home’ feeling, where everything is intimate and close to your comfort zone.

Quite unexpected from a designer, who is known for twisting, collaging and reshaping ideas of fashion, always in a hurry. Just like in case of his last, very laid-back fashion show for men that we’ve seen at Pitti Uomo, Anderson takes a break and wants to clear his (and yours) busy mindset. “Media makes us hysterical. We have to go back to what we know to be humanly grounded,” the designer noted backstage of his show. If you’re still unsure or uneasy with realising Anderson’s new, ‘domesticated’ direction, the Hessian-topped espadrille boots that bottomed nearly every look will get you grounded for summers to come. Or the loose mint-green dress. To my own surprise, I’m really seeing Anderson’s clothes somewhere  in the closet of a well-kept garden of a, let’s say, art-curator who simply needs to chill sometimes, too or perhaps just some drab and frumpy Librarian.