James Long Menswear A/W12

James Long originally debuted his label as a menswear offering back in Spring Summer 2010, incorporating a lean towards knitwear and leather work into his collection and rapidly establishing himself as one of the must see emerging designer shows at LFW. In A/W11 he debuted his first women's collection, which he has showed twice since. A designer that can combine both men's and women's collections that relate effortlessly to each other is a difficult thing to achieve, but through his use of fun, innovative fabrics and techniques and a nod to glamour that wins fans in both men and women, Long has proved he was a talent that can do just that.

Colours were definitely Lynchian, as were silhouettes and shapes. Reds, blacks, brown and ochres all featured throughout the show and leatherwork and velvet fabrics added a heaviness and steaminess to the show

Following hot on the heels of his A/W12 women's show as part of Fashion East, today was Long's menswear offering, taking place in the main BFC catwalk space in the courtyard of Somerset House. A move into this main venue is a big step for the young designer, but clearly a deserved one. In contrast to his women's tasselled and embroidered collection, but referencing elements of it in a natural way, his menswear had an angular, structured finish. Initial references were taken from Edward Burtynskys' 'Quarries', a series of photographs depicting the wastelands that creating quarries develops on the landscape. This was then cross referenced against David Lynch's work, to create a mesmerizing and surreal presentation. “I wanted to do something that was about dream and escape, and also about glamour and seduction”, says Long.

Initial references were taken from Edward Burtynskys' Quarries, a series of photographs depicting the wastelands that creating quarries develops on the landscape

Colours were definitely Lynchian, as were silhouettes and shapes. Reds, blacks, brown and ochres all featured throughout the show and leatherwork and velvet fabrics added a heaviness and steaminess to the show. Quilted leather jackets, velvet collars, shearling collars and slouchy contrasting knit jumpers all added to that feeling of a night out at Twin Peaks' 'One Eyed Jacks'. “I wanted this to be a heavier collection, that had a workwear element to it as well. Workwear done as my take on dress wear, something surreal and moody at the same time,” explains Long. Referencing the workwear inspiration, trousers were utilitarian in their width, adding a real sense of volume and were teamed with mohair knits in sepia tones to give a nostalgic, outdoors feel. With a soundtrack including a cover of Iggy Pop's 'No Fun' and David Lynch's 'Good Day Today' from his recent album, it was a collection of laid back old school decadence combined with a bit of glam. The perfect outfits for a seductively wasted rock star.