When it comes to delivering fashion thrills in the guise of witty, wearable clothes, Jonathan Anderson is surely among the best in the biz.
His spring JW Anderson show was a winner, with a boyish elan lit up here and there with little gusts of fantasy.
The show was fun and upbeat, from the kooky “Wallace and Gromit”-esque plasticine shorts and hunched hoodies that opened the display, to the khaki chinos and navy V-neck sweater at the end, the drama coming from full sleeves built on scrunched nylon.
This JW Anderson collection held on to the brand’s youthful zeal and experimental bent, but may find a wider audience with its variety of carefully calibrated looks.
There was a toy-like appeal to the colorful handbags, kitten-heeled moccasins, loose pants in a harlequin weave and the nearly cartoonish proportion to the rave pants.
Tufts of white feathers emerged from sleeveless, bubble-shaped bomber jackets, or the waistbands of cargo pants, adding a dreamy element that was heavenly and original.
Via decisive flourishes — a big portrait collar on a leather blouson, an apron-like appendage on a narrow trench coat, or extra-wide, extra-long drawstrings on a stiff hoodie-cum-dress — he made the ordinary extraordinary.
In a post-show scrum, the designer skirted the word “blunt,” which he’s been using a lot lately, and also shot down “minimalism,” surely an insufficient description for simple clothes packed with so much attitude.
“How do we find a new type of modernity — through experimentation and disruption,” he said, tidily answering his own question.
Anderson’s was the first big show of London Fashion Week, and clearly the one to beat.