Poet Lab
Ritual: the walk of womanhood
Words by: Evie Summers
To label this a collection would be a misnomer and a colossal oversimplification of the calibre of the offering. It can better be described as a poem, a love letter to nonconformity, one where each garment forms a line, each colour a flourish word and the models a unique voice through which each is dictated. It is a mature and fun introduction to the world of poet lab. A world of dramatic architecture, androgenous excellence, and modern sophistication and glamour.
With the increasingly Orwellian politics of this decade, this fashion week has come as a welcome reprieve. A moment of opposition to the rhetoric that feels so determined to dismiss and destroy creativity and diversity. This is an opportunity to make a statement, draw our lines in the sand. Poet labs crisply and boldly with this contribution.
One of many designers this year who chose to platform gender expression and non-conformity, Giuseppe Laciofuno has, since the brand's conception, held these values central to the operation and presentation.
Carving a niche within the fashion world, his designs display a considered blend of extravagantly constructed silhouettes and an approachable level of wearability that is truly rare.
Most often taking up the streetwear space, his designs feel at home on a catwalk and equally on the streets of Shoreditch.
LFW selection similarly embodied this. Outrageous and innovative at times, even venturing into whimsical, something the designer is becoming more and more comfortable exploring.
Luciofuno breaks up the majority of the collections, monochromatic thick blacks and chocolate tomes, which must, at this juncture, be synonymous with the brand, but with the welcome addition of soft bouncing frills of white and black polka dots and pops of baby blue laces. These pieces punctuate the sequence of black that makes up the bulk of the collection and offer a reprieve for the eye, feeling both intriguing and refreshing.
This is a brand of contrast, of duality, and it is perhaps the strongest element of this collection.
There is a cadence to the show that keeps it feeling performative in the best way; each walk is part of a wider narrative, aided by lights and a pulsing gothic hum that reverberates through the white walls that section the space. This is a brand that understands the theatre of fashion, and maybe this is why its drag reformers are so well placed within the context; they fully understand and embody the drama demanded of such a collection.
His work crafts a universe all of its own, one in which we are not encumbered by the usual strains of the fashion world. A world where inclusivity is merely expected, commented on, rather than praised.
The space itself is divided into 6 compartments, separated by thin veils of white Fabric that cascade down from the ceiling, obscuring but not covering each room. Models wind in and out through each room, Slow and pensive. We begin to perceive the space as near-ceremonial, each model circling the audience ritualistically, flirting and toying as they go.
The pieces themselves feel quintessentially poet lab but with an increased intensity and grunge that feels distinctly London. They are romantic and elegant while still evoking the avant-garde. Almost gaga-esque in parts, they are undeniably glamorous. Cascading draping features, as a key motif throughout each piece, lend a relaxed seduction that is perfectly reflected in the sultry makeup that accompanies them.
The final piece is the crescendo in the symphony's alluring performance. It is a bridal look, constructed entirely in solid black, donned by Tayce – a performer who has made a mark on fashion this LFW. She denies the twisting pattern the audience is now accustomed to, floating directly through the centre. Then, partly disrobed, flees backwards at the close, shocking the audience and concluding the show.
For me, it spoke of a rejection ultimately of the constraints of gender conformity and traditional female roles. Each previous model offered a different representation of how womanhood could be expressed, how they could walk through their lives, driven home by the medley of models, the unique embodiment of each garment. Tayce initially deviated from the walk's contrasted intimacy and felt like a comfort to the respectable performance of womanhood, their final running away a clear message of repudiation of expectation.
