Irish designers celebrate their native land at London Fashion Week

It may have opened with a memorial to the late Vivienne Westwood in Southwark Cathedral, flushing out Kate Moss, Marc Jacobs, Victoria Beckham, Helena Bonham Carter and other starry names, but London Fashion Week’s first show for autumn/winter 2023 last weekend was from Paul Costelloe, a 40-year veteran of the event with a collection that highlighted Ireland and his native Irish heritage.

What originally began as the British Designer Show in 1983 for press and buyers in Olympia, is now a fully fledged hybrid digital as well as physical festival, merging fashion and technology, with many events and consumer experiences open to the general public. Shows were packed, some venues bigger than ever to deal with demand, and among the nearly 50 live catwalk shows (a lower number than previous seasons, however) were three designers from Ukraine as part of a Support Ukraine initiative.

Fashion trends for winter seemed almost accidental to this five-day extravaganza – though body diversity and gender fluidity were significant; pregnant women openly displaying their bumps walked the catwalk at various shows, including that of Irish designer Sinéad O’Dwyer, with many observers citing Rihanna’s recent half-time show at the Super Bowl while pregnant as a stimulus. Models using wheelchairs also appeared in O’Dwyer’s collection, which continues to maintain and express the designer’s ethos of inclusivity and diversity.

Elsewhere, Redefining the Body, a boundary-breaking immersive exhibition curated by editor of British Vogue, Edward Enninful, in collaboration with Snap offered an augmented reality experience in Regent Street, bringing to life six of the world’s fashion houses: Dior, Richard Quinn, Versace, Stella McCartney, and African designers Kenneth Ize and Thebe Magugu.

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Following its first presentation in Cannes last year, which, apart from the physical exhibition, generated 48 million viewers on Snapchat, visitors could harness the technology for virtual try-ons (a lot of fun) or for amplifying each designer room. Opening night attendance in London was thronged with guests including Anna Wintour. “If you can see it, you can be it,” according to Enninful. It runs until March 5th.

[ Irish creativity shines at Simone Rocha’s haunting and beautiful show ]

[ Paul Costelloe dedicates collection to Dublin and Joyce’s Ulysses ]

New technology was evident in other areas. Dubliner Aileen Carville of Asset Haus created and produced a fringe metaverse experience on a web3 platform with a number of London Fashion Week designers, including Banshee of Savile Row, enabling them to present their collections virtually to buyers, press and guests while debuting on the London Fashion Week schedule. Last Tuesday, for instance, Anne-Marie Tomchak, former digital director of Vogue, was in conversation with Ruby Slevin and Rocco Tullio of Banshee.

The British Fashion Council has always been notable for its support of young designers through its Newgen initiative, including many from Ireland such as Simone Rocha, JW Anderson and Richard Malone over the years. Its 30th anniversary will be celebrated at a landmark exhibition in the Design Museum from September 15th to February 2024.

But back to the shows. This was a season notable for the fact that Irish designers made much of their Irish identity and background known for their autumn/winter collections, with several using live Irish music to reinforce those connections. Paul Costelloe celebrated his native city and its landmarks using Irish fabrics – one dress in black linen was emblazoned with silver motifs of familiar Dublin places and references to Joyce’s Ulysses. The show featured some great tweed coats and blowsy silk dresses with his son William’s floral prints. Songs from Enya and Shane MacGowan drove the point home.

In the old Selfridges hotel, Dubliner Robyn Lynch sent out a menswear collection in shades of green that gave a fresh new look to familiar streetwear hoodies, tracksuits, gilets and shorts. She is an upcoming star and a finalist of the 2023 International Woolmark Prize, and her new takes on Aran knitwear were highlights of the collection, as was the Mayo harpist Róisín Berkeley, who composed and played a custom track to accompany the show.

The Central Hall of Westminster was the location chosen by Simone Rocha for 600 guests, where the Irish folk group Lankum set the mood and tone for a collection inspired by the traditions and rituals associated with Lughnasa, the ancient Irish harvest festival.

A poetic melange of menswear and womenswear, decor was interchangeable with pearl detailing, lace and sheer fabrics common to both upending traditional notions of masculine and feminine attire. Pearls have become very much part of the designer’s identity and are hugely popular – the Princess of Wales is regularly seen wearing Rocha’s pearl earrings. Elsewhere, detail, handcraft and a modern sensibility and silhouette continue to inform her collections and have a huge influence on fashion – the decorative crystal shoulder scarves, intricate macramé necklaces, puffed sleeves and puritan collars are bound to generate high-street copies. “A twisted lullaby” she called the collection, grounded as usual with chunky footwear and platforms.

Clare-born Michael Stewart, an RCA graduate with Kildare Village sponsorship, presented an elegant collection called Standing Ground at Fashion East inspired by his native Burren. “I enjoy ancient things and a futuristic aesthetic,” he says, showing a line of long, sinuous couture dresses, some in twisted jersey cut out over the hip, others sculpted in deadstock satin with coats corseted in tweed from Molloy & Sons in Donegal. He was the overall winner of the Future Makers Award from the Design & Crafts Council Ireland last year.

Richard Quinn may have made no reference to his Irish background – his parents are both Irish and attended his show – but this designer, one of the hottest tickets in town, has a flamboyant sensibility and sense of drama when it comes to fashion. His collection, held in a fitness centre transformed into a secret garden bedecked with flowers and chandeliered bowers, provided a lavish display of the dreamiest, most opulent dresses, many of which were aimed at the bridal market. Models walked to the accompaniment of vocals and the English Chamber Orchestra.

Back in Dublin to coincide with London Fashion Week, the British embassy hosted a sustainable fashion show on Wednesday with final-year students from Limerick School of Art and Design presenting their Conscious Clothing collections. The brief was to focus on connections between Ireland and the UK, and more sustainable approaches to working processes.

“Fashion is a very important topic for the UK government,” says consular spokesman Matt Mee. “This event gives a platform for Irish designers and how we can work and help each other together.” The event also included a small show from Kerry native Colin Horgan, another Irish RCA graduate, followed by a panel discussion with retailers and designers. If only the Irish Government offered similar recognition and initiatives to their own country’s fashion industry.