A Collection by The design thinking and full creative expression for Annah Stretton’s ‘All is Pretty’ Collection was first show cased during her runway show at New Zealand Fashion week in August 2014. Picking up on the pop art culture of the 60’s, and one of its most famous poster boys - Andy Warhol, the ‘All is Pretty’ collection brought together a bold use of colour and pattern that was both fashion forward and wearable at same time. About to release her autumn/winter 2015 version of her ‘All is Pretty Collection’, Annah Stretton has focused this range around simple but classic shapes, bold pops of colour and pattern and a wonderful use of layering. The overall effect is a trans seasonal collection that will have universal appeal amongst women who have a very clear focus on what they need to achieve in their day and how they want to look while they go about it.
Where has the inspiration come from? Andy Warhol and the pop art culture of the 1960’s. What was the significance behind the name of the collection - All is Pretty? ‘All is Pretty’is the title of one of his artworks and hence the relevance and fit.
Q&A
Why was Andy Warhol and the 60’s pop culture fascinating/inspiring to you? I guess because I started life as an art school student and I was exposed to many of the influential artists of the time, and Warhol has always been one of my favourites. How would you describe the collection? Graphically strong, with large blocks of colour, big spots and colour pops in orange and hot pink. What are you trying to achieve with this collection? A focus on simple shapes that can be worn trans-seasonally. Layering is key to the versatility, and it has a wonderfully ‘fashion forward’ edge and a ‘wearability’ that will appeal to many. What sort of target market did you have in mind when you were designing it? The 35 year old woman (don’t we all aspire to this age!) who has a very clear focus on who she is, and what she needs to achieve in her day. She is aware it’s all about the packaging, but the clothes cannot wear her – she wears the clothes. The collection was rather eclectic - block colour, polka dots, geometric patterns, amazing make up - what was the design thread that held it together for you? Make up was for the show only and show looks will always be about the drama. If you remove the make-up you have a cohesive and very classic look that has been styled up, so each garment on its own is relatively simplistic and hopefully trans-seasonal. Who doesn’t want that? The styling and the colour pops were the threads that united the collection. Fashion week is an opportunity for designers to showcase their artistic flair or at least take their designs to a more couture rather than commercial level, but what does fashion week mean to Annah Stretton? NZ Fashion week is a wonderful way to support and include so many of the wonderful partners and customers that have embraced us throughout the year and say thank you. It also creates a platform to exercise our creative skill and put together a cohesive collection to take us through the winter months. The global media coverage generated is also a wonderful bonus - footage of the ‘Annah in Wonderland’ collection was picked up by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London this year for one of their exhibitions.
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