As the most fêted designer to show during London Fashion Week, Jonathan Anderson’s collections are constantly evolving, drawing inspiration from eclectic references and, therefore, always full of surprises. Anderson’s AW17 collection, which he described backstage as a “style odyssey” featured a wealth of different ideas, silhouettes, fabrications and styles. Opening with a voluminous black keyhole dress with a drawstring waist and oversized pockets on the chest, to the soundtrack of Primal Scream & Kate Moss' "Some Velvet Morning", dresses played a significant part in the collection, ranging from monochrome to metallic. There were dresses rendered in silver chain mail, and diaphanous silks, and those in red print embellished with big plumes of grey ostrich feathers.
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Fur and leather also pervaded, from the micro leather cropped jackets in brown and black that barely covered the shoulders – a sort of modern shrug – to heavy fur coats worn over wide-legged trousers with trainers. From the fur, delicate chain mail and leathers to the purple parachute silks and brocade, every material was rich and sumptuous; the leather high-top trainers which completed a number of looks added a sporty, wearable finish. “You have this idea of something that is über feminine, but at the same time it can crash, and then it kind of builds itself up again. It’s this idea of stripping it right back to an outline silhouette — something very reduced — and then you start to build it up again,” Jonathan Anderson explained backstage.
Though at times the mish-mash of diverse looks felt slightly discordant, this was overall a beautiful collection that will undoubtedly be a commercial success. We can see Jonathan Anderson’s ever-loyal international fanbase of fashion aficionados in the slinky chain mail dresses, asymmetrical funnel neck tops, reimagined trench coat, shearling jacket and puff-ball skirts already. And as the current king of accessories, i.e. the ubiquitous J.W.Anderson Pierce bag and the Loewe elephant purse, Anderson’s AW17 fringed and ribboned clutches are sure to be next season’s standout bags.