Burberry's Latest A/W Collection: A Show to Remember
As London Fashion Week draws to a highly anticipated close, the Burberry fashion show displays themes of combining past and present fashion trends as well as going to great lengths to create a memorab
The luxury brand ended this year's Autumn/ Winter London Fashion Week show on a tremendous high, providing the audience with an endless display of classic trench coats and iconic check patterns of a wide variety of colours, these mainly consisted of neutral tones and dark, earthy greens.
Burberry manages to recreate variations of their staple pieces and patterns such as the iconic trench coat and check pattern while also doing it differently each time, whether it’s by adding a modern twist or changing the colour scheme - which can change the feel to the collection entirely. This ensures that while the audience gets the sense of familiarity and stability within the brand itself that they crave, they are also engaged and excited every time a new collection is released.
Such modern trends can be seen in this collection particularly, through Daniel Lee’s combining of traditional Burberry trends with current trends in fashion. For instance, many looks would take a classic Burberry check print or trench coat and style it alongside something more sleek and modern. In the case of the image below an aviator jacket is used to complement a check print skirt. Although these two pieces of clothing may sound as though they would contradict each other, Lee’s various use of neutral colours makes it work as the different tones help to make the look work
I also noticed a particular trend towards clothes that appeared to have taken inspiration from the war. For example, in this show there were many looks which were paired with clumpy knee high combat boots, as well as heavy leather bags and thick aviator jackets. This may be seen as a nod towards the current Israel and Palestine conflict, as it was something that was very widely spoken about in the media.
The deep, earthy green tones were reflected in the forest inspired soft grass matting that lined the floor, in order to reflect the outdoorsy feel that Burberry’s clothes provide. According to Daniel Lee, Chief Creative Officer at Burberry, “I wanted it to feel like a forest at night. A feeling of outdoorsy elegance, of comfort and warmth.”
It's perfectly safe to say that this was achieved throughout the course of the show. For instance through the consistent display of warm outer clothing as well as the extensive use of wool in various looks from jumpers to dresses. This is a perfect example of what Burberry does best, testing the limits in terms of fashion in the most elegant way possible and succeeding in doing so every time!
Warm tones were also created through the use of dim lighting during the show, which almost made you feel as though you were watching the show in the evening, despite being outdoors in broad daylight. This mysterious evening feel was further enhanced by the big bulky lights that were almost towering over the catwalk which gave a lamppost-like effect and overall created a magical ambience. These lights almost imitated lampposts you would find along a street pavement, and I feel helped Daniel Lee to achieve his goal of a night time feel.
It was also apparent that Lee went above and beyond to get that “forest at night” feel he was after through his choice in music. An example of this is during the fashion show “a soulful Amy Winehouse soundtrack was played interspersed with a woman’s voice saying “I love London … the smell of London when it rains.”” Inside the football pitch sized tent where the show took place, it was rumoured to have been scented especially to further create the smell of a forest with the fragrance Ivy by Perfumer H.
The high profile celebrities who were seated front row at the fashion show also demonstrates the level of luxury and prestige the brand brings. A-listers including Gabrielle Union, Barry Keoghan, Cara Delevinge, Olivia Colman and many more were seated in the front row of the event. Prominent models in the fashion industry including the likes of Naomi Campbell walked the catwalk of the event, showing off the luxury label’s brand new designs.
Another aspect of Burberry’s show that stood out to me was the diversity displayed throughout. The casting of models of various sizes was fairly noticeable to me as well as the choice of selecting models of different ethnicities. I felt that this sends a positive message towards Burberry’s audience that their clothes are made for those of all sizes and ethnicities rather than just typical white, petite women. This was also shown by the fact that most of the looks worn in the show appeared to be unisex which could be the brand’s way of contradicting societal gender norms.