Claire Barrow and Eloise Parry team up on subversive film

Designer Claire Barrow once described her aesthetic to us as “car boot sale”. Now in her sixth season, Barrow has succeeded in bringing the spirit of punk back to London fashion with her DIY ethic and subcultural references. In March, she put on her AW16 presentation at London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts – an event she dubbed ‘Retro-Spective’. Here, this collection is captured in a new film titled Move On which was created by the designer’s longterm collaborator and best friend, photographer Eloise Parry.

“Move On represents a milestone for us, a change in the direction of our careers and lives, and putting the past to bed,” she tells us. This theme is something that I looked at in my AW16 collection... and also in my decision to remove myself from the fashion week schedule. But it also felt socially and politically relevant given how we are entering into a new period in history – for better or for worse.”

Styled by Haley Wollens, Move On sees the return of some of Barrow’s former campaign stars and catwalk favourites such as Liv Fontaine, Imma Mess, Amy Kingsmill, Louis Backhouse, Susu Laroche, Ryan Skelton and Jess Maybury. There are 30 models in total and they sit in rows – as if they are in assembly – posing in the designer’s AW16 collection.

“The collection itself was a study of historical dress,” she continues, elaborating on the concept behind her AW16 offering. “But instead of looking at reference images, I thought about the fashion images I see on Instagram and how they get embedded into my subconscious. So, I designed a collection that mixed multiple time periods at once, rather than just focusing on one, and tried to create something chaotic and modern.”

Although London Fashion Week kicks off later this month, Barrow won’t be staging a show because she wants to focus more on her creative work, including her art. “I hope that by doing this, I’ll be able to work more freely and creatively which I think will make my work better and allow me to explore other mediums,” she tells us.