FASHION’S HEADHUNT

Maya Menon

Right: MA Knitwear Graduate from Central Saint Martins, Harry Evans’ 2 looks from his2016 graducate collection that were purchased by Icelandic singer-songwriter Bjork. Image provided by Harry Evans.

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Fashion’s Headhunt

‘There is one thing that a celebrity cannot get from the racks of luxury stores – a full, story telling, unapol-ogetically over-the-top and personal experience. That is exactly why they look to students.’ Alastair McKimm, Belfast-born stylist and Fashion Di-rector of i-D Magazine states.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute benefit, better know as the Met Gala, is a yearly New York based display of McKimm’s observations. With tickets for the fundraiser costing $30,000 each and tables $275,000, there is no shortage of money here. The glorified

Celebrities are looking to fashion students from Parsons, Pratt and Central Saint Martins for their next ensemble - but what exactly can these young designers give them that luxury ateliers cannot?

“[Celebrities]are constantly searching for a new persona – not just for things like the Met Ball – but even for everyday life. Normalcy does not appeal to them. If you think about it, they are characters in their

own right.” - Guo Pei

Left : Excerpt from Harry Evans’ sketch-book, Image provided by Harry Evans. 16

philanthropic party, chaired by editor-in-chief of American Vogue, Anna Wintour, chooses a theme that guests have to adhere to. Needless to say, the gala’s attendees have access to all the best luxury designers in the world – but some have looked else-where.

Barbadian singer Rihanna’s 2015 Met Gala look was a 24-kilogram gold-threaded, fox-fur lined, bright yellow cape that was the result of 20 months of careful construction. The theme of the 2015 Met Gala was China: Through the Looking Glass. The couturier behind the creation was Chinese couturi-er Guo Pei, an unassuming Beijing-based designer who did not know much about Rihanna or her in-ternational stardom prior to the celebrity personally contacting her.

Though the 49 year old was far from a student when brought to the forefront of Hollywood’s attention, she stands firmly by the imaginative, fantastical ap-peal that fashion design students have. ‘There are no limits when you are a student. There is a sense of freedom when you create and often, you are think-ing of a particular character – not a person. When you design for a celebrity, that is what you have to keep in mind. They are constantly searching for a new persona – not just for things like the Met Ball – but even for everyday life. Normalcy does not ap-peal to them. If you think about it, they are charac-ters in their own right.’ She shares.

While the idea of looking to students for designs may have just occurred to celebrities like Rihanna and Lady Gaga, Icelandic singer and songwriter, Bjork has been doing this for years. Macedonian de-signer Marjan Pejoski, a Central Saint Martins final

year student in 1999, designed a Swan Dress for the singer’s appearance at the 73rd Academy Awards. The result was a full-bodied mock up of the bird, with its head made to rest on her chest and layers of white tulle ruched from the waist onwards. fIn a sea of tailored, glamorous, figure-hugging gowns, Pejoski had created more than just a costume for Bjork. Marlene Dietrich donned a similar costume when she went dressed as Leda and The Swan for a costume party in 1935. Pejoski’s design, however, was beyond dressing up. It was an extension of the singer, perhaps even an alter ego. He had created a personality, an expression and successfully insti-gated multiple reactions from those around her. ‘People hated it! They didn’t get it. It was something that you wouldn’t have been able to find anywhere else. It would have been a costume on anyone else. When you make a costume an everyday look, that’s when you have achieved a level of ease. That was what I wanted.’

Pejoski seems unfazed by the fact that he was just a student when Bjork scouted him, with a frag-ile reputation and still in the gentle afterglow of his graduation. The negative attention, he claims, was attention after all. ‘It was still attention. People were taking notice.’ He shares. Though Pejoski was a student nearly two decades ago, this belief that celebrity attention is positive and career-changing is still present. His work was on a platform, subject to criticism and praise alike, acknowledges Pejos-ki. ‘You can’t complain when people criticise. The public taking notice is never a bad thing.’ It is this unfaltering confidence in publicity that drives the relationship between celebrity, celebrity stylist and student designer. Bjork has maintained this rela-tionship over the years and has most recently taken

“And yes [what Bjork described] was exactly what I wanted it to be: high camp, glamorous, totally over the top, but funny. It’s totally unbe-lievable to know that an artist I’ve been inspired by for years gets my

work.”

- Harry Evans

Right : Bjork’s album cover for Vesperati, wearing Marjan Pejoski’s Swan Dress - Image from Bjork’s album cover

an interest in recent Central Saint Martins gradu-ate, Harry Evans. Graduating in 2016 from the MA Knitwear Programme, Evans’ graduate collection is a playful balance between costume and everyday wear, undoubtedly a feast for the eyes. Dubbed as a ‘knitwear prodigy’ by Bjork in an interview with The Guardian, it seems the singer and the designer were an effortless match made in conceptual heav-en. Bjork also describes Evans’ work as ‘an inter-esting slapstick between medieval costuming and a modern, comical angle’ in the abovementioned interview, something he is extremely pleased that she picked up on. ‘I couldn’t really call myself a knitwear prodigy although I’m flattered. And yes [what Bjork described] was exactly what I wanted it to be: high camp, glamorous, totally over the top, but funny. It’s totally unbelievable to know that an artist I’ve been inspired by for years gets my work.’ He gushes.

Focusing on mixing luxury with tradition, the 30-year-old designer incorporates bespoke, hand-crafted knit and larger than life crochet ensembles.

He is quick to state that his graduate collection was very different from his usual designs. While his graduate show featured historical elements span-ning from the medieval to Elizabethan era, Evans was particular about incorporating modern day el-ements to his initial mood board of over-the-top, uncontainable, glamour. This resulted in oversized, floppy, Viking-ship hats, off-shoulder crochet tops and pearl-like mounds attached on each intersec-tion. As for everything else post-graduation col-lection, Evans describes it as ‘tangible, things you would see every day.’ Looking at the larger pic-ture of his thought process, the subtle presence of eighties couture, folk attire and daily street wear, the end product is customisation. Borrowing from worlds that separate like oil and water, Evans col-lages something new. When asked if his approach is similar to that of a costumier’s, he replies, ‘De-signing a whole look is more of a costume design approach but I don’t approach my work from that angle. When you design a costume you’re trying to describe a specific character, which in a way is how you design, but fashion design is about what feels right

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for here and now, rather than some bubble outside of reality.’ It is clear to see that within his realm of fantasy, is a vein of groundedness – giving him away as a designer enamoured with the costumier’s storyboarding process while staying surefooted in his own.

While acknowledging that celebrities like Bjork can give designers their big break – Evans noticed a boost in his Instagram following as well as an increase of stylists con-tacting him – is there a downside to premature celebrity attention? While Marjan Pejoski was not particularly af-fected by the Swan Dress debate, it is hard not to think what more or else might have been for the then fresh graduate had he gone a quieter, less prominent direc-tion. There is no denying Pejoski’s current success. The creative director of London-based label KTZ, estab-lished in 2003, Pejoski is still imminently present in the fashion industry. It is difficult to say, however, how the spectacle of the Swan Dress swayed the fate of his career. Evans is positive about celebrity attention, claiming that Bjork’s interest in his work has boosted in confidence. ‘It feels like another big step for me. Students have so much freedom, you don’t even realise it until you leave. So I think students can offer something totally unique

and personal that hasn’t really been catered for anyone.’

Not everyone has had a gleamingly positive experience when prematurely selling to a celebrity however. Rachel Dunil, a recent womenswear graduate of Parsons was shocked to find that after designing a pink pair of trou-sers for the songstress Solange Knowles, a creation that she describes as ‘one off’, she was immediately pigeon-holed. ‘It was so difficult to move on from it. It wasn’t my usual style, it was something I was experimenting with but after Solange wore them in public, that was all I was known for.’ Dunil found herself making the con-scious effort to branch out afterwards, pushing for jobs that she felt embraced her as a designer. As for matters of payment, while Evans was open about the fact that he was paid for his work by Bjork, Dunil declined to comment. ‘Let’s just say it was a long process. Overall, while getting attention from somebody famous can tru-ly help a designer, there is no denying the drawbacks. I’ve definitely experienced them and now it’s a matter of building an identity solely based on me as a designer.’

Left : Polaroid from Evans’ graduate show. On this page : Fitting prior to the graduate show, in Central Saint Martins’ fashion studios, Images pro-vided by Harry Evans