Held at the end of last week, Middlesex’s BA Fashion show appeared to be a testament to the fact that students like to have fun. Whether it was through rainbow coloured string wigs, or teddy bear accessories that clung to models’ arms and legs, the 17 finalists took every opportunity to have a good time before they enter the big, bad world of work. Or at least that is how their parents might put it.
Childhood seemed to be a recurring theme, especially for Julia Hauss. Her “Cumming of Age” collection saw models dressed in ruffle and bow adorned dresses printed with childlike cartoons of aliens and unicorns. Elsewhere materials varied from ostrich feathers, sequins and latex. One of Emily Witham’s fishnet-wearing boys carried a giant heart that looked like it had been plucked out of Vegas. The inspiration coming from a family picture of her granddad and his brother wearing frilly dresses as children.
It wasn’t just fun and games though, with the inspiration behind the collections having a far deeper meaning. Kathryn Casey-Burnett’s maniacally-stitched tulle creations took inspiration from a number of artists and their works including Louise Bourgeois’ Cells installations. The end result she said was “an extension of the inside body”. As for the struggles that will come in the near future for this pack of graduates, Casey-Burnett puts it best: “money”.
