This past weekend marked the June edition of London’s Fashion Week, highlighting menswear with a focus on experimentation, thinking outside of the box, and cultural touchstones. Here’s a highlight reel of some of the best moments!
1. The Martine Rose Showcase
British-Jamaican designer and founder of the self-titled menswear label Martine Rose showcased her Spring/Summer 2024 collection in a community center at St. Joseph’s Church. Chosen with a purpose, the location of the show sought to highlight the importance of community centers to immigrant communities. The fashion showcased was influenced by working class aesthetics, featuring garments that utilized gaffer-tape detailing, faded denim, and high visibility material that looked straight out of a construction zone!
2. The Street Style
The runway models aren’t the only ones who show up and show out to Fashion Weeks around the world! The street style of attendees is often top-tier as well, and London Fashion Week was no exception. From colorful patchwork tank tops to friends color-coordinating their looks, the guests fit right into the high fashion world they were immersing themselves in for the weekend.
Spotted outside of the BFC/GQ Designer Fashion Fund event, #BFCMember QASIMI's show and the FARFETCH BEAT 009: Browns Fashion x Crenshaw Skate Club; corsets, denim, long pink skirts, 90s-inspired-looks and retro sunglasses. See more street style via https://t.co/Sq63iUEXpF. pic.twitter.com/5dghcagqJA
— London Fashion Week (@LondonFashionWk) June 11, 2023
3. The Fresh Off The Boat Collection
Trinidadian designer Geoff K Cooper rooted the Spring/Summer 2024 collection for his brand Sagaboi in Caribbean culture. Spinning the oftentimes derogatory term “fresh off the boat" used to belittle immigrants into a positive, Cooper showcased a collection that’s dauntless, dripping in fresh optimism! The brightly-colored garments ranged from cobalt blue pants to a shiny gold suit and graphic T-shirts plastered with West Indian colloquial terms.
4. QASIMI, A Brand For All Genders
QASIMI, a brand that markets itself as creating genderless garments, showcased a collection honoring Sudanese painter Kamala Ibrahim Ishaq this Fashion Week. It wasn’t the brand's first Middle Eastern-focused collaboration, a pattern that’s a reflection of the brand founder Khalid Al Qasimi’s personal roots in the region. This Spring/Summer 2024 collection used beadwork to accent garments silk-printed with Kamala’s iconic paintings, and denim to create a lived-in workwear look.
5. The Ravensbourne University Show
For the third consecutive year, a group of fashion students from Ravensbourne University had the opportunity to present their designs in both womenswear and menswear through an official catwalk show. The showcase featured garments ranging from floral dresses with a giant ribbon woven twist to bold cage-inspired menswear looks.
Check out a full list of the student designers and where to follow their fashion journeys on social media here!