St Fashion SS11

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15

Spring / Summer 2011

Dress, from £1,537, Halston. Gold collar and cuff (left wrist), both price on application, Robert Lee Morris.

Gold cuff (right wrist), from £69, Kenneth Jay Lane.

Shoes, £1,100, Gianmarco Lorenzi

70

21 front row The minimal-maximal clash at the spring/summer 11 shows could have resulted in fashion confusion. Luckily, says Sarah Mower, we were lef with grown-up clothes with a sense of childish fun

26 coveted When it comes to haute footwear, Miuccia Prada has achieved a hat-trick with her mismatched, mash-up shoe

28 one to watch The simple, wearable clothes with exquisite finishing Guillaume Henry is creating for Carven are the talk of Paris

34 trend This summer will see an explosion of colour bright enough to make even Paul Gauguin shield his eyes

36 ballet The pas de deux fashion is dancing with ballerina style this season is particularly strong when it comes to flat shoes

38 sunglasses As sun-sensible as they’re stylish, larger-than-life, statement shades are still in the frame

41 artefact Paco Rabanne’s revolutionary giampaolo sgura; giles deacon photographed by sølve sundsbø/art + commerce

chain-mail bag gets a timely revamp

42 guide The seasonal keynote: a dress.

Choose from peasant, floral, Seventies, Forties, lacy and more…

44 beauty This season, there’s a new take on no-make-up make-up, thanks to high-tech products that protect as they perfect

48 Yohji Yamamoto Three decades afer overthrowing Western assumptions about fashion, the Japanese master of the cuting edge is celebrated with a V&A retrospective

52 accessories

Construct your wardrobe with building-block brights on a neutral foundation

66

56 the scarlet woman Bold shades of red and orange clash and compete in a display of feminine strength

66 the British invasion Despite the fall of Galliano at Dior, home-grown talent is found at major fashion houses around the world

70 let’s go round again The glamour and decadence of disco is back. Don’t blame it on the recession. Don’t blame it on the zeitgeist.

Blame it on the boogie

81 stockists The ST Fashion directory 82 heroine Explorer and adventurer Bonita Norris explains how aviatrix and feminist icon Amy Johnson inspired her

RALPH

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18 contributors

On the cover: Orange cotton dress, £595, Prada.

Photography: Alex Cayley.

Fashion editor: Mika Mizutani

Bonita norriS made history last year when she became the youngest British

woman to climb Mount Everest, aged 22. Formerly a disability assistant from Berkshire who had never climbed a mountain before, she has since become an ambassador for the Global Angels Foundation, for whom she speaks to children and teens about her Everest experience, and the benefits of taking on the great outdoors. In this issue of ST Fashion Bonita talks about her heroine, the pioneering British aviator Amy Johnson.

CoCo roCha is a Canadian model who was scouted by an agent at an Irish

dancing competition in 2002. Five years later she opened the Jean-Paul Gaultier fashion show by céilí dancing down the runway – American Vogue dubbed this the ‘Coco moment’. See ST Fashion’s own Coco moment on page 70. ‘We had a wonderful team on the shoot. I find it easier to move when photographers let me play my iPod and Alex Cayley was gracious enough to do so. Hairdresser Rolando Beauchamp and I had a good old time singing along to Eartha Kit and Shirley Bassey!’

EDITORIAL editor Joanne Glasbey executive editor Peter Howarth assistant editor Sarah Deeks Chief sub editor Chris Madigan Sub editors Sarah Evans, Tanya Jackson, Gill Wing DESIGN Senior art director Ciara Walshe Senior designers Dominic Bell, Helen Delany picture editor Juliette Hedoin Creative director Ian Pendleton FASHION Fashion director Daniella Agnelli Fashion assistant Aurelia Donaldson

BarBara metz and eve raCine met as students while studying for degrees in

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Hilary Alexander (Fashion) Ruth Griffin (Accessories) Kate Shapland (Beauty)

photography at the London College of Communication. Afer graduation, Barbara set up her own practice and Eve went on to pursue a MA at the Royal College of Art. It wasn’t until 2000 that the pair founded their eponymous photographic studio, Metz + Racine. The duo are known for their ‘not so still’ still life photography – see their renowned dynamism and sense of fun on ST Fashion’s accessories shoots, throughout the magazine.

COMMERCIAL (UK) executive director Dave King publishing director Toby Moore 020 7931 3350 director of fashion and luxury Carley Ayres 020 7931 3328

Giampaolo SGuro is a photographer from Puglia, the most southern part of

Italy. He studied architecture at university for five years before making the jump to photography, with a shoot for Italian Glamour marking his industry debut. He has gone on to shoot for Vanity Fair and various editions of Vogue; as well as photographing adverts for the likes of Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana and Cavalli. He names Avedon, Penn and Meisel as his masters, and has just completed his first short film for designer Francesco Scognamiglio. Giampaolo lives and works in Milan.

COMMERCIAL (ITALY) K.Media Srl Via Cavalieri Bonaventura, 1/3 20121 Milan, Italy +39 02 29 06 10 94; kmedianet.com SHOW MEDIA 020 3222 0101 Ground Floor, 1-2 Ravey Street, London EC2A 4QP info@showmedia.net www.showmedia.net Printed by St Ives Web Ltd (stivesweb.com) Colour reproduction by fmg (wearefmg.com)

Kate Shapland is beauty editor of the Telegraph Magazine, and has recently

received an Achiever’s Award from the Cosmetic Executive Women (CEW) organisation for services to the business. She has writen about beauty for 25 years, having started her career at Harpers & Queen. She is Heart FM’s ‘voice of beauty’, edits The Leg Room blog, and is currently developing a career-long product ambition that will launch in 2012. She and her husband, Ben Scot Thomas, live in London and are looked afer by two black Scoties.

ST Fashion is designed and produced by SHOW MEDIA LTD for the Telegraph Media Group. All material © Show Media Ltd and Telegraph Media Group. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is strictly prohibited. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, no responsibility can be accepted for any errors or omissions.

The information contained in this publication is correct at the time of going to press.

www.dior.com

front row

21

Illustration Julia Pelzer

adult content The minimalist/maximalist clash has reached détente, says Sarah Mower: grown-up clothes with a playful touch

Dress, £690, and sombrero, £460, Prada, spring/ summer 2011

The hemline crashed. Trousers strode in. Colour fizzed and shoes calmed down. Everybody started talking about the Seventies, and – strangest sensation of all – actually started to have a good time.

These are the main points I took away from the spring shows, as simplistic as that sounds. Now I think of it, the whole thing was really like watching a 28-day tussle between minimalism and maximalism, which was molto entertaining. It ended in an unexpected set of results: good clean shapes, but garnished

22 front row

The backlash wasn’t angry in any detectable way – it was sophisticated, urbane, knowing and playful.

Short was dead Silk/cotton dress, £2,280, Marc Jacobs, spring/summer 2011

with bold, delicious, decadent extras. Minimal-maximal. I know that sounds like annoying fashion nonsense, but hear this: I, a woman of normal proportions and sensible age, came away knowing what I want to wear. I liked what accessories were doing. I loved the fact that it seemed no big deal that models of all ages were walking side by side in so many shows. Most importantly, from the point of view of morale, designers suddenly came to their senses and remembered that fashion should be fun.

On the minimal-modernist side, we have Céline, Botega Veneta, Calvin Klein and the like. On the maximal-retro team, the heavy hiters: Tom Ford, who has re-emerged in women’s fashion, and the mercurial Marc Jacobs both throwing us deliriously back to the Seventies. And then, perhaps even more interestingly, there were the piggies in the middle: the ones who zigzagged their ways to individualistic, bright, zingy stripes and paterns on ultimately quite simple and wearable clothes; that minimal-maximal thing I was talking about. I’m counting Prada, Jil Sander and Christopher Kane among the principals here.

Now, to work out why this huge surge of energy and innovation should have unleashed at this particular round of shows, we need to cast our memories back to what fashion people were going on about last autumn. OK – not hard. It was Mad Men and the return of the bosom, you’ll recall. That dominated endless reams of discussion, though I have to confess I didn’t see many of us going round in conical bras and circle skirts when it came to it. The other thing was the reappearance of Phoebe Philo at Céline.

It was Céline-mania that really took off, causing a pandemic of beige tailoring and geting every competitor really ratled, because fashion editors not only wrote so rapturously about Philo, and endlessly photographed Céline clothes, bags and shoes, but actually went out and spent their own money on them. The Philo phenomenon was evident at the shows: every day there were more women walking around wearing the stuff – flaunting it in each others’ faces, in fact.

And I think this secretly really got to other designers. It put a firework under them. Because everyone was forced to take a position on how to react to a collection that had celebratedly revived minimalist daywear and the sort of clothes that look good on women over 35. This must have been a bit sobering for the hordes of labels still turning out short, tight cocktail dresses suitable only for a 6f 18-year-old – and even that was no longer guaranteed, because suddenly, she was looking ridiculously out of date.

So, for designers pondering what to do for spring, there were only two paths to take: either you used Céline as a guiding light while navigating yourself into some kind of personal expression along similar lines, or you decided, nope, you’d rage against beige and all its works. Either way, Céline was the catalyst. It got things moving, in a good way.

The backlash wasn’t angry in any detectable way, though. It was sophisticated, urbane, knowing and playful, and it referenced the Seventies – a time only the seriously grown-up, such as Tom Ford (born 1961) and Marc Jacobs (born 1963), can remember.

Now, I think there’s more to this than the nervy decade-hopping to which fashion is so prone – Forties one season, late Fifies/early Sixties the next, then Seventies. Although no one’s talking about the Fifies or Mad Men this season, and the clothes in their literal form didn’t get worn much, what has carried over is that these were clothes for women, not teenagers. Whether you were tempted to wear those pencil skirts and dirndls or not, just looking at them effectively pulled the hemline down. Short was dead.

Now there had to be another solution, different proportions – but only if a woman could wear them.

I’m prety sure that’s how Ford and Jacobs both ended up thinking about the early Seventies –

24 front row

The clothes, from the tailored threepiece trouser-suits to the long, fringed dresses, were, if not pure Seventies, then an idealised version of it Leopard-print jacket, ¤3,570, and trousers, ¤1,330, Tom Ford, spring/summer 2011

the moment when the mini crashed, ‘midis’ came in and, to avoid having to choose between the two, women started wearing trousers instead. What’s more, the escapist decadence of the time finds its perfect parallel in the current zeitgeist.

The Seventies, of course, are Tom Ford’s favourite decade – he ransacked them for inspiration in his Gucci and Saint Laurent years – but this time, he approached it by casting the fashion goddesses of the era in his show. Marisa Berenson and Lauren Huton, both in their sixties, walked insouciantly alongside friends who included Julianne Moore and Rita Wilson, both now in their fifies, as well as Rachel Feinstein and Daphne Guinness, in their forties, and so on, all the way down to the teenage models Karlie Kloss and Joan Smalls. The clothes, from the tailored three-piece trouser-suits to the long, fringed dresses, were, if not pure Seventies, then certainly an idealised version of it – and were slung about with rock-crystal pendants and bracelets, which I can guarantee will initiate a run on jewellery of that period.

Both Marc Jacobs’ eponymous show and his collection for Louis Vuiton were also Seventiesinspired, evoking images of Grace Coddington, Jerry Hall, Marie Helvin, Jodie Foster, and those glossy magazine pages circa 1972 to 1977 – the prolific period that began with glam rock and ended with disco. Plenty of designers who couldn’t possibly remember the decade had also picked up the vibe, in all likelihood because they’d paid a visit to the Yves Saint Laurent exhibition at the Petit Palais in Paris last summer. Allusions to Saint Laurent’s knife-pleated silk skirts turned up in collections

by Stella McCartney, Peter Piloto and Aquilano Rimondi. In all three cases, the designers had used the template to lengthen their skirts – but every one of them had also put slashes in them, to show leg, thus reassuring young women, who are so used to having their legs out, that there’s no need to give it up overnight. Combine the skirt with a tailored blazer, perhaps sling on a chain belt and you have a modish, feminine look.

Detectable within this tendency is a pull toward the rich-hippy, Marrakech-bound fantasy. It’s there at full throtle in Pucci, where Peter Dundas cut sexy, flounced swirlyprinted maxi-dresses, fringed suede shirts and flares. More subtly, it’s also embedded in collections you’d never accuse of ethnic references. Preen used Islamic tile paterns as inspiration for paterns on long, contemporary-style chiffon skirts and, even at Céline – supposedly the home of all that is pure and modern – there were definite undertones of Moroccan handicraf in shaggy waistcoats and, again, tile prints, which in this case, appeared on silk pyjama pants.

But what if your goat is really got by the Seventies? What if retro in any form annoys the hell out of you? Fortunately, there are plenty of designers who have no truck with looking back – but they’re in a good mood, too. If I were looking for the antidote to ‘reference’, I’d go straight to Prada and Jil Sander, where graphically cut dresses and separates are saturated in vivid, eye-popping colour and ofen done up in cheerful broad stripes of pink, orange, red, electric blue, yellow and Kelly green. Too much, you cry?

Oh, don’t be a spoilsport. As always, the way to indicate a knowledge of what’s going on is to do it with an accessory. Something as small as a tiny clutch bag is enough. Make it ice-lolly orange or magenta – something wild. Now that fashion’s back on form at last, it’d be a pity not to take away a souvenir.

Sarah Mower contributes to Vogue and also writes the catwalk reviews for Condé Nast’s style.com website

For all enquiries contact Hermès on 020 7499 8856 Hermes.com

Giant scarf in summer twill.

When colours meet inspiration

Hermès, contemporary artisan s i n c e 18 37.

26 coveted

Words Ruth Griffin

mélange à trois

‘It’s time to be bold,’ says Miuccia Prada of this season’s designs. And what better

way to do so than with this vamped-up version of her classic Miu Miu Mary-Jane shoes? Miuccia is fashion’s greatest matchmaker, seamlessly combining eras and styles, textures and finishes to create something new and startlingly different every season. these do just that, working fetish straps, the daintiness of a twenties dancing shoe and shocking-pink leather in ways that are a delight to behold. they’re bold and they’re beautiful...

Ankle boot, £610, Miu Miu; miumiu.com

Fashion stylist: Jane howard. ProP stylist: Vincent oliVieri

Photography Metz + Racine

28 one to watch

Words Natasha Fraser-Cavassoni Photography Mathieu Zazzo

Words XXXXXXXX

big is better Autumn hairstyles are an triumphs volume

mister normal Carven’s Guillaume Henry garners praise for his customerfriendly simplicity, but there is magic in his clothes

‘I’m interested in creating effortless, fresh-in-spirit clothes available at democratic prices,’ says Guillaume Henry. The 32-year-old Frenchman is creative director of Carven, the fashion-forward but affordable label which has caused a buzz in Paris. He is quick to state that the clothes are manufactured in Hungary, not France. ‘Carven isn’t a luxury brand and that’s why we can do that.’ Henry’s frank admission defines revolutionary in a high-fashion Paris obsessed with ‘made in France’. Yet he has turned his honesty and talent into a magic formula which avoids high street comparison and is worn by hipsters such as Alexa Chung.

As Carven’s stiff white rectangular bags steadily stream out of Carven’s new flagship store on Rue Saint Sulpice into the elegant Lef Bank area and beyond, esteemed fashion insiders are full of enthusiasm. Net-a-Porter’s Natalie Massenet says, ‘Guillaume Henry and Carven are part of the must-know, must-wear commandments for any stylish girl: shrunken short suits, boxy-cut jackets,

prim-lady blouses, bow-backed pumps.’ Averyl Oates from Harvey Nichols describes ‘the simplicity of pieces that flater the wearer without overwhelming’, conjuring up ‘Parisian chic updated with unexpected details’. And LVMH consultant Jean-Jacques Picart explains Henry’s appeal: ‘Guillaume is normal – which is exactly what we want right now,’ he says.

Tall and good-looking, with an angular face and grey eyes that resemble the youthful Yves Saint Laurent, Henry appears ‘normal’ but is too charismatic to go unnoticed. When he strides into the sales room, women suddenly smile and models hover eagerly.

Henry cannot resist troting through next season’s collection, which is unavailable for months, pointing out the versatility of a black crepe dress – ‘the neckline can be worn two ways,’ he says – or a new line of ‘wearable’ preppy-inspired platforms and ‘the exquisite hand finishing’ on a winter coat’s cuff; dresses and coats being Carven’s winter bestsellers.

According to Carven’s owner Henri Sebaoun, Henry has the right to such confidence. ‘Guillaume’s first collection was in 2009,’ he says. ‘And now Carven is available in 35 countries and sold in the best boutiques such as Colete and 10 Corso Como.’

The fashion house was founded by Carmen de Tommaso in 1945 – her vision being unfussy sporty styles designed by a woman for women.

For the past 30 years it has been a ‘sleeping beauty’ brand, best remembered for its Ma Griffe scent.

Born near Dijon to a teacher mother and banker father, Henry always wanted to design. ‘At eight, I made clothes for my cat.’ Afer fashion college, Henry joined Givenchy’s studio in 2002 and three years later lef for Paule Ka, a successful mid-market brand. At Givenchy, Henry says, he learnt about the importance of ‘timeless quality’ whereas Paule Ka taught him ‘about the client’.

Both places prepared him for Carven.

Henry’s professionalism and lack of airs, on the other hand, make him universally popular.

‘He doesn’t view himself as an artistic director who ignores sales,’ says Sebaoun. ‘He realises he needs to please both buyers and clients.’ Only women work in Henry’s creative studio and although he admits to being ‘occasionally obstinate’, he does listen. Case in point, Carven’s rising hems. ‘Afer the fourth time I heard the remark that they were too short, I realised, OK, I am not Mary Quant!’ carven.fr Natasha Fraser-Cavassoni writes for the International Herald Tribune and Vogue

34 trends

all things bright Colour floods the catwalks this season as we prepare to embrace a vivid, bold new world Words Harriet Quick

There’s a wave of colour coursing through fashion at the moment so bright and so bold it could make your retinas burn. The colour surge is fashion shorthand for dynamism, bravado and, above all, fun. And it feels so new, so exciting as – let’s face it – we have been dressing in a sea of ‘serious’ stealth-wealth monotones in tune with our austere times, and in utility-chic shapes. Fun has not really been on the agenda. But now the energy has been re-channelled towards a trend for simple, pure designs but in all manner of colour combinations, from head-to-toe hues to subtler saffron, jade and ochre, bubblegum brights, and at the far reach of the scale, glowing, punkish fluorescents. NB: black is not in the line-up.

These shades have been applied with the artfulness of Matisse or Gauguin in mesmerising mixes that excite the senses – both the eye as well as the mind. In the process of developing the spring/summer collections, designers seem to have become enthralled by exotic adventures. Many have paid homage to Yves Saint Laurent’s Moroccan retreat, the Majorelle Gardens, with bold blooms and palms backdropped by brilliant blue walls and desert backgrounds.

Saint Laurent was a master colourist, ofen combining three colours in hypnotic mixes of emerald, sapphire and bronze, or, of course, his signature pink, black and orange. Other designers, such as Raf Simons at Jil Sander, escaped to the lab to pore over dye and saturation formulae, concocting exclusive shades worthy of our investment. The saturation – ie the strength and depth of tone – is absolutely key. Luxury colour creates a kind of halo; cheaper tones seem to bounce from the surface.

Gucci’s collection had a decidedly retroglamour air as Frida Giannini cut slippery silk satin into pyjama suits in peacock, emerald and teal. Giannini finished the pieces with distinctive accessories, such as gold leather tassel belts, heeled sandals and clutch bags. ‘I was inspired by a trip to Morocco,’ says the designer of her choice of colours, which drip with a certain Studio 54 decadence. ‘Vivid colours, used with a relaxed silhouete to evoke an exotic elegance.’ The collection nods to a generation of women who

‘Nafea faa ipoipo/WheN are you GettiNG Married?’ by paul GauGuiN, used With perMissioN froM the rudolph staecheliN faMily fouNdatioN, basel, sWitzerlaNd/the bridGeMaN art library; coNdÉ Nast archive/corbis; bettMaNN/corbis; 4 corNers iMaGes.coM

Left: the vivid hues of paul Gauguin’s painting. Below, from left: louis vuitton, christopher Kane and Jonathan saunders, all s/s11

thrilled in dressing like fireflies to literally dazzle under then-novel disco-ball lights.

The sheer glamour synonymous with colour is an aspect that Marc Jacobs amped to the max in his Louis Vuiton collection, where impeccably made-up models – all gloss lips, fine denier tights and lacquered hair – slinked down the catwalk in jewel-toned cheongsams. Jacobs revisited the time in the late Seventies when we were enthralled by orientalism both in interiors and in fashion. Afer so much serious-minded fashion, Jacobs revelled in the unashamed camp, glam and gloss of the era. He talks about ‘strong, almost vulgar colour combinations’ – by which he refers to rich purple with orange and blue orchid prints or lacquer red and sunshine yellow. These combinations are rich with associations to play with. I remember the oriental Eighties, falling in love with the video for David Bowie’s ‘China Girl’ and finding an embroidered import jade green cheongsam in a Chinatown store, a bright red pair of stiletos and carmine red lips. In my mid-teens, the effect was uterly sluty and therefore all the more thrilling. In his own collection, Jacobs married sorbet shades in gypsy dresses and Prety Baby pieces like satin dungarees with orchid flowers tucked behind ears. In short, exotic.

But colour can, of course, be highly romantic. Take Salvatore Ferragamo’s gypsy skirts and crop peasant blouses in jades, terracota and ochre that win not only in the intensity of colour but in the sheer expanse of gently pleated fabric.

Designer Massimiliano Giorneti even gives his colours a certain pedigree and class in the naming.

He talks about ‘burnt sienna, sage, jade,’ which imply Bohemian elegance.

How to make fluoros sophisticated and wearable? Take a cue from Raf Simons, who fashioned couture-style long evening skirts in stand-and-stare fluoros married with simple white T-shirts. Suddenly a bright orange evening skirt becomes the epitome of elegance, not something one would mistakenly buy in a jet-lagged haze. An option for the office? Try his rich purple suiting in featherlight immaculately tailored suits.

Some designers are natural colourists: most effective when applied with wit. Who’d have thought that Christopher Kane and Jonathan Saunders, coming from grey, overcast Scotland would have such a handle on hue? Kane applied bright colour to conservative pieces – imagine boxy jackets and kick-pleat skirts – but cut from shiny lace leather. He trimmed a tatoo print-crepe with tiny ribbon trims of fluoro ribbon. Kane remembers his sister and friends going out in Glasgow in screaming bright punkish neons as a teenager and that sense of rebel undercuts his aesthetic; his first collection on graduating from St Martins consisted of neon bandage dresses. In February he won the prestigious BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund 2011 award, worth £200,000.

Fellow Scot Jonathan Saunders cut his teeth as a print maker and his subtle coloration of chalky

Suddenly a bright orange evening skirt becomes the epitome of elegance, not something one would buy in a jet-lagged haze

tangerines, limes, dove greys and blues is simply breathtaking on his flower- and leaf-paterned cotons for spring/summer. And it’s conveniently easy to wear as well, in skater-style skirts and box-fresh-look coton shirts.

Orange is one of the big ‘it’ colours for the season. To be more accurate, a shade of tangerine.

It looks great with black (see the YSL tie-front blouse and flippy coton skirt) and with glossy tanned limbs. Orange is known to excite the appetite and stir the senses, hence its prevalent use in fast food restaurants and in salad garnishes (carrots). In terms of what works with what, there are no rules – be as bold as you want to go. Colour can be a splash (try Miu Miu neon flash heels, or jewels and bangles) a head-to-toe look such as a silk T-shirt and skirt or an incendiary mix with accessories to boot. Designer Louise Gray pulls this off with aplomb with her artsy punky look topped with fluorescent make-up. De trop? Try Tom Ford’s lovely Ginger Fawn lipstick.

The fun to be had! Start with your favourite colours, a box of crayons and some paper and play until you find the combinations you like. It’s a fine way to brighten up a day.

Harriet Quick is fashion features director of Vogue

Clockwise from left: deborah harry at studio 54 in 1979; ysl s/s11; ysl’s Majorelle Gardens in Morocco; Gucci and ysl, ss/11; 1971 fashion shoot; Miu Miu pink bag, s/s11

36

coming to the point After the success of Black Swan and the sight of roll-up pumps at after-show parties, ballerina style is prima Words Peter Howarth

‘If I could’ve been anything, I would have

a serious bun, and she’d scream at us. I’d

loved to have been a ballet dancer.’ It’s

like to go back and do it again.’

not the kind of declaration you’d expect

Of course, for most, being a

from a punky 23-year-old with a nose stud

dancer remains just a dream, but dreams

and tattoos. But Alice Dellal, model and

are potent things and it is this that Italian

drummer in the rock band Thrush Metal is

luxury leather-goods label Tod’s has been

a big ballet fan. ‘My sister got to work en

smart enough to recognise and tap into.

pointe, but I gave up. Dancers have to put

The bash in Beijing is being staged by the

in so much work and effort. When I can’t

luxury accessories house to celebrate its

sleep, I watch clips of the Russian ballet

recently signed partnership with Teatro

companies on my computer.’

alla Scala and promote its wares in the

We are in Beijing in a car travelling to a performance of two principal dancers

all-important new Chinese market.

‘We needed to find a way to

from Teatro alla Scala in Milan, who are

show exactly what “Made in Italy” means,’

presenting a new pas de deux created by

explains Diego della Valle, president and

the theatre’s young choreographer,

owner of Tod’s. ‘The emotion, passion and

Gianluca Schiavoni, especially for this

commitment to keeping alive the skills and

event. In the back seat are two more

traditions that lie at the heart of our culture

members of Thrush Metal, and a straw

is unique. Our products are all handmade

poll of these young women reveals that

in Le Marche, the traditional leather-working

ballet is something they all have in common.

region of Italy, this partnership illustrates how

Isabella Ramsay (guitar) studied it in

artistry, attention to detail and creativity all

junior school, though she was a ‘massive

combine to create something very special.’

tomboy’, and Emma Chitty (bass) took

The solution came in the form of

classes for five years: ‘Our teacher was

a collaboration between Tod’s and a great

typically French and wore her hair in

Italian institution. Teatro alla Scala,

inaugurated in 1778, is the spiritual home of ballet in Italy. The result of the joint venture is a short conceptual film, An Italian Dream, which interprets through dance the actions of shoemakers. The clever blend of art and artisanship is something that transcends language and

Clockwise from left: Ballerina styling from Chanel’s S/S11 collection; the Teatro alla Scala workshop in Ansaldo, Italy; prima ballerina Sabrina Brazzo at the Forbidden City, Beijing

culture – the Chinese celebrities and press assembled in Beijing for the screening and accompanying live performance were clearly impressed.

There’s no doubt that ballet is having a moment. As well as Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan, which has costumes designed by Rodarte, both Chanel and McQueen showed tutu-influenced silhouettes and fabrics for this season.

You haven’t been able to open a glossy magazine over the past few months without seeing a fashion shoot paying homage to the art. Even Lladró, the Spanish porcelain manufacturer, has launched a collection of miniature ballet-themed figurines.

But, of all things associated with ballet dancers, it is what they wear on their feet that seems to resonate most. In Noel Streatfeild’s family favourite, Ballet Shoes, one of the young heroines wistfully spies on a class of older girls: ‘Pauline watched the figures through the glass, the rows of white practice dresses, and the rows of pink canvas ballet shoes.’

Gianluca Schiavoni describes the attitude of the ballerina to her point shoes as being like a fetish, because the connection is so strong: ‘It’s like a drug – without them, you can’t do what you love to do. You can’t do what is important in

ballet flats and Brigitte Bardot in the

retailer, reporting that flats were outselling

your life. You can’t dance. The shoe is like

same, with gingham shirt and cropped

heels by three to one in January.

another foot, a continuation of your leg –

trousers. They were leaving behind their

it is not merely a tool for the job. I have

mother’s more formal style and high heels.’

seen many dancers cry because they don’t have the right shoes.’

DaviD Slijper/Trunk archive; STefano GuinDani; ellioTT erwiTT

It’s something that anyone who

Winkworth launched French Sole in 1989 and is considered by many to have popularised the style in the UK. In the past

has spent hours perfecting first position

five years, she says, it’s really taken off. ‘Of

will recognise. Hollywood actress Marisa

course, Black Swan has reinvigorated

Tomei, also in Beijing for the Tod’s event,

interest; Mad Men too – Christina Hendricks

confesses to having studied the full range

wears them in a couple of episodes. Katie

of dance – ‘ballet, tap, modern, jazz’.

Holmes, one of my best customers, has

What’s more, she says, in her luggage she

worn them to play Jackie Kennedy in a TV

has brought her beloved, battered Lanvin

series. And, to be honest, I think women

ballerina flats to China. She takes them

are just sick and tired of heels.’

everywhere, she says, not only because

Certainly ballet shoes are the

One high street retailer reported that flats were outselling heels by three to one early this year

However, Sarah Toner, a former dancer with the Birmingham Royal Ballet, who now runs a hugely popular class called Fabulous in High Heels that teaches women how to walk correctly in heels, has mixed feelings about ballet flats. ‘If you’re out for an evening in stilettos and your feet start to hurt and you have a pair of pumps in your bag to get you home that’s a great idea. But a lot of women might wear them all the time and I don’t feel they offer enough support. They’re no better than stilettos in that regard.’

Of course, habit can cut both

they are comfortable, but because they

anti-stilettos. At the Golden Globes this

ways. Standing in the Tod’s store in

look like the real thing and remind her of

January, Rollasole, so named because you

Beijing, with its circular tabletop display of

her time doing demi-pliés.

can roll their ballet pumps up for easy

ballet shoes in every colour of the rainbow,

carriage (they come with a free carry bag

I ask Sabrina Brazzo, La Scala’s prima

Winkworth, of ballet-pump specialists

for your stilettos) distributed gold and black

ballerina, whether she wears flats off

French Sole, this is the appeal: ‘They reflect

footwear to the stars at the after-show party

duty. ‘No, I only wear heels,’ she says.

nostalgia for childhood, when we all danced.’

– Hayden Panettiere and Heidi Klum were

‘Because I have to wear these for dancing

But they also have their roots in rebellion:

snapped sporting them. And perhaps it

every day.’ The grass is always greener…

‘In the late Fifties and early Sixties you

was post-Christmas high-heel agony that

had Audrey Hepburn in Funny Face wearing

accounted for Peacocks, the high-street

According to designer Jane

Peter Howarth is executive editor of ST

38 sunglasses

Photography Metz + Racine

eye openers

This season, the eyes have it in terms of bold new colours, shapes and forms. Take

Burberry’s oversized violet-tinted shades, while at the opposite end of the scale spectrum, Ray-Ban’s smaller, rotund specs, owe more to John Lennon and the geek parade than Bianca Jagger at Studio 54.

Then there’s the downright kooky. Who better to take a pop at neon luxe than the whimsical Miuccia Prada?

Her curly-wurly frames might have been plucked from Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. Alexander Wang and Stella McCartney take a more demure view. Frames follow a Fifties glam theme, sweeping upwards to mimic cat’s eyes in classic tortoiseshell. No going incognito here.

Lucie Muir is a freelance fashion writer for Vogue and the Saturday Telegraph magazine

Stingray-pattern ‘Jill Bordeaux’ sunglasses, £500, Louis Vuitton.

Poppy-print ‘Jackie’ sunglasses, £90, Nicole Farhi. Clear ‘Freya’ sunglasses, £198, Oliver Peoples. Blue and black ‘Baroque’ sunglasses, £190, Prada. Peach sunglasses, £279, Cutler & Gross

FASHioN STyLiST: JANe HoWArd. ProP STyLiST: ViNCeNT oLiVieri

Words Lucie Muir

WWW.THOMASSABO.COM

CONTACT: +44 (0) 20 77 20 97 25 l UK@THOMASSABO.COM

Katy Perry

artefact

41

chain reaction The year 1969 was one of ground-breaking events – Neil Armstrong made a giant leap for mankind, Concorde took its virgin flight and Paco Rabanne revolutionised fashion with his pioneering space-age couture collection. This was a range so radical, even Rabanne dubbed it ‘The Unwearables’. Who could forget the images of those chain-mail dresses draped on the sculptural frames of Audrey Hepburn, Jane Birkin and Donyale Luna? With Le 69, the iconic handbag in his spring/summer collection, Rabanne is back with an intergalactic bang.

Modelled on the original Sixties design, but a good deal more wearable than those dresses of the same era, it has been reworked in an exciting array of 21st-century materials – the incarnation pictured is in metallic pink suede. And, In recognition of its place in history, London’s Design Museum has named its forefather one of the ‘50 bags that changed the world’.

Metallic leather ‘Le 69’ bag, £780,

Words Ruth Griffin Photography Metz + Racine

FASHIon STyLIST: JAne HoWARD. PRoP STyLIST: VIncenT oLIVIeRI

Paco Rabanne; pacorabanne.com

42 guide

PEASANT The look The Milan runways were packed with pretty peasant dresses during the spring/summer shows and they come in myriad variations: floaty

rock the frock

chiffons, crisp broderie anglaise, dressy silks… At Fendi and Marc Jacobs, there were ballooning sleeves on blousy dresses while, elsewhere, designers opted for a more light and fluid take on the boho look.

Key piece With its gently scooped neckline and pretty flower embroideries, Alberta Ferretti’s floor-sweeping coffee tulle take on this look is heavenly. If you’re planning a laid-back Ibiza wedding this year, this is the dress for you (£4,965; albertaferretti.com, 020 7235 2349).

You could also try Asos’s floor-skimming

Dresses are big this season: big, lacy, bright and floral

soft blush appliquéd cotton dress (£45, asos.com) has a softly gathered neckline and a roomy shape, making it the perfect garment for those balmy holiday evenings.

FORTIES The look Yves Saint Laurent’s presence will be felt widely this spring as designers have plundered every corner of his archive. But it was his ode to the Forties that seemed to inspire Stefano Pilati, who has created pretty puff-sleeved below-the-knee dresses in pimento-red or jade chiffon. It’s a decade that has also inspired L’Wren Scott, Oscar de la Renta and Roland Mouret this spring.

Key piece While some designers boomerang each season across the decades, Roland Mouret has always been

FLORALS

faithful to the elegant silhouettes of the

The look This season sees a major return

Forties. A prime example is the chartreuse

to bold print and some of the most

cap-sleeved calf-length dress (£770;

wearable depict rambling florals. At Dolce

rolandmouret.com, 020 7235 5000) that

& Gabbana, cottage gardens created

can be found at his new Mayfair atelier.

the centrepiece in a parade of flowing

You could also try Temperley alumna

maxi-dresses that finished the show,

Sophie Cranston has some Forties-

while elsewhere designers opted for more

inspired dresses in her summer Libélula

graphic takes on traditional floral prints.

collection – including the raspberry Gee

Key piece Erdem’s gardenia print was one

dress (£310; libelula-studio.co.uk), which

of the season’s dreamiest. It’s stunning in

has pretty layered sleeves delicately

a long gown (£3,360; net-a-porter.com)

edged with cream piping.

but the collection also includes a shorter shape with a neat collar and gently flared skirt (£2,100; erdem.co.uk).

You could also try Utterly romantic and super-elegant, Banana Republic’s pink silk goddess dress features one of

Words Clare Coulson

the high street’s most covetable floral prints (£165; bananarepublic.gap.eu, 020 7758 3550). Wear it as it was on the

Illustrations Julia Pelzer

Banana Republic catwalk, with a tan silk trench over the top.

SHIRTING

DISCO

The look Fashion’s ongoing flirtation with

The look There are plenty of Seventies

boyish dressing has sparked a renaissance

disco-inspired numbers to choose from

of shirt-dressing, from crisp, dress-shirt

this summer, from Marc Jacobs’s

inspired tunics to more feminised

slit-to-there halter-dresses to the

versions with dirndl skirts. Dries Van Noten

jewel-coloured jerseys at Halston

used the shirt as the starting point for his

Heritage. Whichever style you choose,

collection, which includes white cotton

just ask yourself this: could you have

shirt-dresses with soft chiffon overlays.

worn this dress to Studio 54 circa 1978?

Key piece Michael Kors’s laid-back

Key piece There is nothing wallflower-ish

BALLET

Californian-inspired collection includes

about Marc Jacobs’s billowing chiffon

The look With a touch of prescience, now

an elegant khaki shirt dress that

party dresses; his halter-neck silk gown

that Black Swan is the talk of the season,

perfectly blends boyish style with a

(£2,125; marcjacobs.com, 020 7399 1690),

ballet inspired Hannah MacGibbon’s

more womanly silhouette (£1,750;

cinched at the waist with orchids and

feather-light collection of plissé dresses

michaelkors.com, 020 7409 0844).

slashed to the thigh, is the ultimate

for Chloé. Many other designers have

You could also try Club Monaco arrives

dress for serious party animals.

opted for flared dresses that seem to

at Browns this spring with its brilliant,

You could also try With its deep green

draw on dance, too. This look is all about a

all-American basics such as the deep

print and retro Seventies shape, Tucker’s

fitted bodice and a floaty skirt in soft hues.

khaki Aileen cotton shirt dress (£129;

watermelon-print panelled silk dress is a

Key piece Chloé’s iridescent cappuccino

clubmonaco.com, 020 7514 0000).

more subtle way to channel the spirit of the Hustle (£319; tuckerbygabybasora.

tulle dress (£4,680; chloe.com, 020 7823 5348), with its asymmetric

LACE

shoulder and ribbon-tie waist, sums

The look Whether it’s the lace print that

up this look perfectly – light, super-

is laser-cut into Christopher Kane’s neon

feminine and, in short, a dreamy party

pieces or the delicate baby-dolls that

POP COLOUR

frock for summer.

appeared at Collette Dinnigan and

The look Bold, brash colour is one of

You could also try Malene Birger puts

Dolce & Gabbana, lace brings a shot of

this season’s most significant trends,

a fresh spin on the trend for almost-

youthful femininity to spring. Designers

from one-tone dressing in Crayola crayon

weightless pleats and flowing, balletic

used the material in all its variations,

primaries to the rather challenging

dresses with her pleated silk maxi-dress

from wisp-fine, almost vintage-looking

‘colour-blocking’ in which dazzling

in nude and lemon, with an eau-de-nil

pieces to the bold floral lace that

shades are thrown together in one look.

sash (£869; bymalenebirger.com,

appeared at both Marni and Valentino.

Key piece Alessandra Rich has created

020 7486 0486).

Key piece Valentino’s long-sleeved,

elegant, original, dip-dyed-lace evening

dusty-grey lace dress speckled with

dresses in neon lime, tangerine and pink

WHITE

gold threads is one of the season’s

or in draped acid-yellow silk (£1,485;

The look If the LBD is a winter essential,

most demure (price on application;

net-a-porter.com)

then the LWD is this season’s fresh,

valentino.com, 020 7235 5855).

You could also try Spring’s pop colours

cool alternative. Dolce & Gabbana’s

You could also try Whistles has a

work best when they are worn in bold

collection is almost entirely made up

cream, long-sleeved lace dress with

shapes. Boutique by Jaeger nails the

of LWDs in silk, satin, lace and cotton,

sweet scalloped hem and sleeves that

trend with its bold vermilion dress with

while elsewhere there are endless

is pleasingly pretty (£175; whistles.co.uk,

fitted bodice and flared cupcake skirt

takes on this summer essential – from

020 7391 0956).

(£180; jaeger.co.uk, 0845 051 0063).

com, 020 7734 1234).

cool cotton tunics to slinky jersey evening dresses.

SEVENTIES

Key piece Francisco Costa’s white

The look Longer lengths continue to

silk-satin calf-length dress for Calvin

dominate this summer and the chic new

Klein Collection has a spaghetti-strap

crop of maxi-dresses bears little relation

belt and shoulder-baring halter-neck

to its boho predecessors. Whether you

that makes it feel so Nineties but so now

choose an ankle-skimming shirt dress or

(£1,970; calvinklein.com, 020 7495 2916).

something more slinky in silk jersey, focus

You could also try Dresses do not get

on narrow silhouettes and cinch your

more clean-cut than Gap’s white long-sleeved shift with a simple keyhole detail at the back (£45; gap.eu, 00 800 0600 6666).

Longer lengths continue to dominate this summer, with a chic new crop of maxi-dresses

waist with a contrasting belt.

Key piece Raoul, which launched at Matches last season, has plenty of elegant silk maxi-dresses with a vaguely Thirties feel in soft colours, including duck-egg blue, nude and black (£327; raoul.com, 08700 678838).

You could also try With its fluttering ruffles and sparse flower appliqué, Oasis’s dusty-pink sleeveless maxi-dress (£110; oasis-stores.com, 01865 881986) is romantic without being sickly sweet.

Clare Coulson is the fashion features director of Harper’s Bazaar

44 beauty

Words Kate Shapland

the naked truth

Dare to bare this spring with a brand new spin on no-make-up make-up

Kutlu/trunKarchive; fmg photography

‘Snow-bunny flush’, ‘shower-fresh face’, ‘boy-girl beauty’ – tags are already rolling off editors’ keyboards to fasten to a look which, to the seasoned beauty writer, was unarguably the most breakaway in this season’s new collections: despite the newsmakers – the neon lips (Jil Sander), the silver-foil eyeshadow (Prada) and the Biba revival (Marc Jacobs) – barefaced chic stood out a mile this season for the way in which it was brilliantly reinvented.

It appears every season – we’re used to seeing the no-make-up make-up on the runways; it’s a safe option for designers who are keen to keep all eyes on the clothes. Invariably, though, it is always too fresh to be forward-looking. This is the first season in many that I can remember it being interesting and impactful enough to make a proper directional statement – and on at least three catwalks. Looking at footage from Chloé, Lanvin and Anna Sui’s spring/summer 2011 shows in particular, you can clearly see the make-up artists have broken barefaced out of its bland, overworked rut and re-spun it into some quite remarkable looks.

With emphasis on the features, rather than the colour on them, face-artists such as Charlote Tilbury sought to use the neutrals to make the most of the face – not always the way when fashion collides with beauty – sculpting, illuminating and augmenting with whites and beiges and the occasional dash of black and mauve.

Tilbury’s ambition, for Chloé, was a lit-from-within effect for the complexion via a sheen rather than shimmer finish – a departure that could be seen in the use of eye colour, too: make-up artists for the Sportmax, Blumarine and Rag & Bone shows dabbed flesh-coloured cream shadows over eyelids to create a glazed finish that appeared to lif and brighten the eyes when it caught the light. Where shimmer was used to illuminate, it came from bronzing powder – enjoying a bit of a renaissance at Salvatore Ferragamo and Moschino’s shows, where it doubled up as blusher to shape the face and make skin look nicely flushed rather than tanned.

Tilbury described the look she did for the Chloé runway as ‘handsome’ – which shows again how different the new bare face is to its pastel-prety

A new crop of highdefinition foundations give skin an airbrushfaultless appearance

builD THe looK

original, though that is not to infer that the looks were not feminine. Smart use of pale pink with touches of black – usually a hard combo – made Ferragamo’s models especially look sweet as candy.

But Charlote’s thoughtful use of eye make-up – sepia tones up to the crease of the lids, a darker, earth tone along the lower lash line and brow colour to construct a shapely arch – made her girls look ever so slightly androgynous and boyish, hence the boy-girl beauty comparisons.

Shimmer was not excluded altogether from the new bare face; it was just more refined and largely concentrated on the eyes – none of that strobe effect was visible on cheeks and temples. Out there with the most liberal sprinkling of sparkle were Prada and Anna Sui. At Prada, make-up queen Pat McGrath highlighted the girls’ eyes with a flash of silver shadow that was so fine it looked like foil.

Meanwhile, on Sui’s runway, the stunning gilt eyeshadow glaze could have been gold leaf – a polished technique that showed up again at Sportmax’s show, although, this time, the glaze was a peachy red-gold and applied beneath the eyes as well. What was interesting about this use of shimmer, though, was that it worked as part of a barefaced look – it didn’t look unnatural or unwearable, perhaps because it was so delicately done.

But even when a harder edge was introduced, as with the black eyeliner at Christopher Kane and Ferragamo’s shows, it worked neatly with the mood, never looking out of place.

I believe this is chiefly a result of the current superior bases make-up artists are now using: new high-definition foundations that make skin look as quenched as it does post-facial, and give an airbrush-faultless appearance. The smartest of these bases don’t just make skin look lit from within, but actually do work deeper to boost its glow power over time. So, while complexions get beter and beter, the cosmetic effects are such that HD foundations make it easier for everyone to wear less colour: the facechanging possibilities of these miracles are liberating and confidence-building.

This look could be seen as the antithesis of those super-saturated brights we also saw on the catwalks, but, intrinsically shaping and improving in the way real make-up should be, it could also be a building block to bright. So, if you prefer more colour on your face and want an edge to it, just add a luminous lip colour or smoky eyeshadow to your repertoire and, hey presto, your seasonal make-up wardrobe is sorted.

Your base Dior Capture Totale Serum Foundation holographic light boosters give a 3-D glow and a reparative complex treats skin. £62, 020 7216 0216.

Le Metier de Beauté Magic Lustre Cream mix with eyeshadow or powder blusher to transform them into coloured glazes. £21, liberty.co.uk.

MAC Sunbasque Sheertone Shimmer Blush Just enough shimmer and colour to give skin a natural flush either as base or blusher. £16.50, maccosmetics.co.uk.

YSL Velvety Peach Créme de Blush, £28, 020 7235 6706.

Kate Shapland is the Telegraph Magazine’s beauty editor

Begin by creating a flawless base with one of the new hD foundations. then use bronzing powder in place of blusher to give a healthy flush. next, add a little sheen to cheeks and temples. used deftly, it can still work as part of a barefaced look – just avoid the strobe effect. Keep eyes neutral and highlight with a glaze, and subtly define brows. finish with a pink lip tint.

Your eYes Bobbi Brown Metallic Long-Wear Cream Shadows in opal and platinum, £16.50 each, bobbibrown.co.uk.

Shu Uemura Shine

Mystique Eye Colour in ivy gold, £14.50, 020 7240 7635.

Smashbox Lash DNA Mascara, £18.50, debenhams. com. Giorgio Armani Smooth Silk Eye Pencil, £17, 020 7201 8687.

MAC Cream Colour Base in hush, improper copper and Shell, £13.50 each. MAC Eye Brows in fling and lingering, £11.50 each.

Your lips Nars Lip Stain Gloss Duo in turkish Delight & Sayonara and Stolen Kisses & pampa, £21, narscosmetics.co.uk.

Giorgio Armani Lip Shimmer in no 22, £20 Giorgio Armani Rouge d’Armani in no 101, £23 MAC Tinted Lip Conditioner SPF15 in petting pink, £11.

Cardigan Kenneth Cole T-shirt Ted Baker Trousers Karen Millen

Shoes and accessories available from a selection at House of Fraser.

FASHION COLLECTIONS BY www.houseoffraser.co.uk

Dress Day Birger Scarf Dickins & Jones Bag Ted Baker

Jacket Andrew Marc for Pied a Terre Dress Ted Baker

Parka Firetrap Dress Linea

Dress Supertrash

Cardigan Dickins & Jones Jeans & Shirt Linea Weekend Bag Ted Baker

roberto frankenberg/corbis outline

49

Yohji: three decades at the cutting edge words Marion HuMe portrait roberto frankenberg

With a major retrospective at the V&A this spring, fashion visionary Yohji Yamamoto, one of the world’s most influential and enigmatic designers, will at last be accorded the recognition he deserves

The question is not why is Yohji Yamamoto the subject of a major fashion retrospective at the V&A Museum in London this spring, but what took so long?

For it is now 30 years since Yohji – always called Yohji, not Yamamoto, by fashion insiders – along with Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons, stormed the bastions of French fashion. His arrival was nothing short of shocking.

‘Shocking’ is an overused word in fashion, but, in March 1981, the front-row set were truly appalled. They were already in a jumpy mood. The chill wind of President Miterand’s newly elected socialist regime was blowing through the silken corridors of Paris fashion, where the moto is rarely ‘liberté, egalité, fraternité’. But at least they expected to be on somewhat familiar ground, to see more of the coquetish frills and furbelows of the likes of Valentino and Ungaro. Instead, they were confronted with oversized, flawed, monochromatic, flat-heeled, gender-neutral, asymmetrical, shabby-looking clothes. ‘Is there a “yellow peril” on the horizon?’ thundered Le Figaro. Not a line one could get away with now.

Although the first to be accused of ‘Holocaust chic’, Yohji Yamamoto and Rei Kawakubo were not the first Japanese designers on the Paris fashion scene. Hanae Mori had established a gracious reputation for neat litle suits, Kenzo had made his Jungle Jap shows into extravaganzas and Issey Miyake had been showing in Paris since 1973. But the storm caused by Yamamoto and Kawakubo didn’t die down; it merely got more fierce. By 1983, Le Figaro was still raging, telling readers, ‘This miserable-ism is not for you. Neither are these patched garments, nor these new

rags, nor these fabrics tied hastily as taters. Nor all this funereal black. Nor the livid make-up of decomposed women. This is a snobbism that presents the future in a bad way.’

From the beginning, the British were more curious.

Joan Burstein of Browns and the late Joseph Etedgui of Joseph were quick to see the possibilities of the new wave. Browns later landed Comme des Garçons, while the Joseph stores carried Yohji. British fashion students, who, back then, would travel by coach and ferry to Paris and beg, borrow or steal tickets to shows, were also early fans. Some recall finding their way to Yohji’s studio afer his first show and being shown textures and shapes completely new in the West. British Vogue soon realised this was the aesthetic of the future, praising the designers of the ‘International East’ for their ‘noblesse oblique, thunderstruck colour and marvellous new manipulations of print and texture.’

Part of the savagery of the initial reaction from the old guard must be atributed to the prejudice of those just one generation away from war. As for Yohji Yamamoto himself, he is defined by the circumstances of his birth, to a widowed mother, who worked 16 hours a day to raise him. In 1987, he said this in an interview with Sally Brampton, then one of the UK’s leading fashion scribes, now an agony aunt: ‘The reason my clothes are the way they are is because I have given up. I desire nothing.

Some people try to relate that to Buddhism, but it has nothing to do with it. It is hard to appreciate what I say unless you were born in Tokyo in 1943, when World War II was destroying everything. Success came just by chance.

I never wanted anything. Like most of my generation in Japan, I didn’t want to do anything or be anyone, so I started to help my mother in her dress shop. I hated it.’

A lifelong love of rock ’n’ roll might seem to have sounded a lighter note (and led to a bizarre show in which

‘The reason my clothes are the way they are is because I have given up.

I desire nothing’

Top, left and centre: From the YYF collection, autumn/ winter 2007 and 2009.

Right: from the ‘Yohji Yamamoto Dream Shop’ exhibition, Mode Museum, Antwerp, 2006

male models walked to ‘Ain’t Nothin’ but a Hound Dog’ played on a bazooka), yet Yohji himself has been sombre about ‘Americanisation’. ‘We were fed American products, but, at a certain age, you start realising things. The question for me was, who are the Japanese people?’ he has said.

‘It is very difficult, even for us, to find out.’

Nevertheless, as time has gone on, Yohji has also, brilliantly and surprisingly, explored the aesthetic of Paris, where he sets up home for several weeks every season (and his mother comes too, to cook for him).

Having first fought against the richness of haute couture, laterly he has subverted it. Who can forget his catwalk bride (which will have pride of place at the forthcoming exhibition) with a gown so huge it swept the notebooks off the laps of those in the front row?

For all the memorable runway sensations, most of Yohji’s creations are rather plain, ofen in navy and industrial gabardine, which makes them seasonless.

The same women who would not be seen dead in last season’s Prada happily boast of wearing 20-year-old Yohji, which explains why there is so litle trade in his garments on the vintage market.

What his clothes have always explored is feminism. Never interested in coquetish appeal, his woman is always strong, although, as he has concurred, ‘Most men do not like strong, independent women with their feet on the ground. Men don’t want women to be outstanding. When women try to be real people, there is tremendous pressure against them. I’d like to say, hang on, keep trying.’

To do so, wearing timeless Yohji is a pleasure.

The exhibition ‘Yohji Yamamoto at the V&A’ runs from until 10 July at the V&A Museum (vam.ac.uk) Marion Hume writes for The Telegraph Magazine, W, Harper’s Bazaar Australia and The Australian Financial Review

monica feudi, ronald stoops

50

00 accessories 52

colour blocks bold expanses of intense tints were a highly visible theme on this season’s catwalks. but if full-colour is too extreme, combine bright accessories with neutral tones photography METZ & RACINE fashion editor jANE howARD

00

Rope and glory Opposite page, clockwise from top left: Coral 55 denier ‘Dublin’ tights, £10.50, Cette.

Purple, nude and orange lambskin and suede, natural enlaced rope platform ‘Tahiti’ shoe, £1,115.00, Dior. Beige leather clutch bag, price upon request, Valentino.

Pink and black striped clutch, £430, Prada Beige related Clockwise from top: Yellow raffia wedge shoe, £485, D&G. Green leather bag, £650, Miu Miu. Powder medium zip-around leather shoulder bag, £1,150, Céline. Beige beaded leather clutch bag, £390, Marni

00 54

Blue heaven This page, clockwise from top: Orange ‘Celeste’ wedge shoe, £930, Hermès. Jade leather belt, £250, and citrus leather belt, £275; both Smythson. Blue lambskin and goatskin ‘Jigé Élan 29’ clutch, £1,850, Hermès. Jade travel clutch bag, £435, Smythson. Pink plain plastic bracelet, £99, Marni Tan alive Opposite, clockwise from top left: Lily Pure Matt 50 denier tights, £13, Falke.

Nude cotton Spandex jersey short-sleeve T-shirt leotard, £24, american apparel.

Opal patent corset belt, £295, Burberry.

Nude leather open-toe sandal, £600, Versace.

Opal patent leather elongated clutch bag with strap, £595, Burberry.

Rope necklace, £199, Armani.

Fashion stylist Jane Howard prop stylist Vincent Olivieri Manicure by Katie Jane Hughes, orlybeauty.co.uk Model Eva Doll at Premier

Creator of the stiletto, master of the flat and inventor of the inward Curving ChoC, shoemaker roger vivier was always ahead of the Curve

STOCKISTS DETAILS ON PAGE 81

words Marion HuMe photography paul z aK

00

Diana Vreeland described her collection of Roger Vivier shoes as ‘a lesson in perfection’

Make an unforgettably draMatic entrance this season with one of the catwalk’s strongest colours. being well red has never been so iMportant PhotograPhy alex cayley

fashion editor Mika Mizutani

Sheer delight Papaya cotton and silk toile flammée blouse with chiffon back, £935; black cotton canvas skirt, £1,085, both Yves Saint Laurent

Green goddess Orange spice double silk raso jacket, £1,320; ortensia matt satin drape strapless top, £470; Indian jade crepe romain fold pants, £550; green suede high-heeled platform sandals with laminated python detail, £545; all Gucci. Gold bracelet, £315, Giuseppe Zanotti Design

Far vermilion Tomato light wool gabardine tied jacket, £1,860; black fine cashmere tied cardigan, £1,120; and tomato light wool gabardine low-waist pants, £930, all Hermès. Black vegetable calf harness belt (around neck and waist), £669, Lanvin

Full on Purple double face cotton peasant blouse with flower appliqué, £970; red double face cotton waisted gathered skirt, £885; and leather belt, £395, all Marc Jacobs

Red brigade This page: Poppy light washed satin dress, £2,700; cognac waxed calfskin belt, £500; and beige waxed calfskin shoes, £590, all Lanvin

Tangerine dream Opposite: Orange cotton dress, £595, Prada

Knot waving Orange silk top, ÂŁ483; and silk skirt, ÂŁ1,500, both Haider Ackermann

Action station Bicoloured silk crepe jumpsuit, £2,190; and burgundy sequined belt; £630, both Louis Vuitton. Black suede 105mm sandal, £740, Yves Saint Laurent Model Coco Rocha at Storm Models Make-up Karan Franjola at Marek & Associates Hair Rolando Beauchamp for Bumble and Bumble Manicurist Kiyo Okada at Garren New York for Chanel Production: Sarah Math Stylist’s assistant Antoine Seguin STOCKISTS DETAILS ON PAGE 81

words JO CRAVEN ILLUsTrATIoN K AT E GIBB

band of hope and glory No matter where iN the world aN atelier is based, chaNces are oNe of the UK’s maNy desigN taleNts will be at the helm. feted by fashioN hoUses, coUrted by their accoUNtaNts aNd fawNed over by goverNmeNt miNisters with aN eye oN oUr gdP, british desigNers have Never beeN more iN demaNd

Statuesque shoes in hand-printed suede, perhaps inlaid with miniature mirrors – such extravagant flights of fancy are the day-to-day work of Nicholas Kirkwood. He hit the fashion scene a mere six years ago, but has already been headhunted to be creative director of Pollini, the luxury Italian accessories label. He continues to design the fierce heels for which he is known and, last month, opened his first shop on Mount Street, London W1.

Kirkwood is just one among the latest generation of British talent mopping up the cream of the top jobs around the world. In Paris, Phoebe Philo has the women’s fashion world worshipping at the Céline altar, while, at Loewe in Madrid, Stuart Vevers is breathing fresh air into another venerated brand.

And the list of home-grown creative dynamos goes on, and by no means depreciates in impressiveness: Giles Deacon has taken over at Emanuel Ungaro

and Jonathan Saunders at Escada Sport, and then there’s Christopher Kane at Versus for Versace.

But what is it exactly that we’re doing so right? The capital’s creative reputation certainly plays a part. As Alexandra Shulman, editor of British Vogue, puts it: ‘There’s something about London that enables people to fly creatively – the mix of tradition and innovation, the rich cultural and social melting pot and our willingness to embrace idiosyncrasy.’ Add to that the strength of our fashion colleges, from the pupils of Wendy Dagworthy – one of the founders of London Fashion Week – at the Royal College of Art, to those of the famed tough-love mistress, Louise Wilson, course director of the MA programme at Central Saint Martins, and you have a powerful blend.

Together, the influence of Dagworthy’s and Wilson’s former students covers the entire fashion

Opposite, clockwise from bottom right: Christopher Kane of Versus for Versace; Giles Deacon of Ungaro; Nicholas Kirkwood of Pollini; John Galliano, ex of Dior; Jonathan Saunders of Escada Sport; Phoebe Philo of Céline; Stuart Vevers of Loewe

67

landscape, from the late Alexander McQueen to the current crop. As Sarah Mower, the British Fashion Council’s ambassador for emerging talent, says of Wilson: ‘If you were to take away her ex-students – Christopher Kane, Jonathan Saunders, Richard Nicoll, Roksanda Ilincic, Louise Goldin, Mary Katrantzou, Mark Fast, Danielle Scut and David Koma – who would we be lef with?’ What’s more, she credits those recent graduates with the continued success of some of the world’s most prestigious fashion houses, adding: ‘And where would Lanvin, Céline, Balenciaga, Calvin Klein, Acne and Louis Vuiton be, for that mater?’

This last is a point not ofen appreciated.

Stuart Vevers honed his skills in a number of studios. In 1996, he was taken on by Calvin Klein in New York, moving from there to Botega Veneta in Milan before designing accessories for Luella, then working for Givenchy and Louis Vuiton in Paris and Mulberry back in the UK, and finally, in 2008, heading to Loewe, where he is now creative director. That’s more than 10 years of learning on the job: ‘I do think education has a lot to do with why British designers are so much in demand,’ he says. ‘London is such a style centre, with a proper youth culture that you’re surrounded by when you’re in college. Plus, it helped that I had a hunger to be a designer, which set me on my way.’

Nevertheless, he admits to being saddened by the lack of manufacturing in Britain, which means most designers have to travel to work. In contrast, the Italians and French can draw on a strong atelier tradition and have maintained their cloth mills, which has both sustained their fashion industry and kept local crafs alive. ‘We’re known for young, innovative designers in the UK, but there are so few who make their clothes here that it’s like a cotage industry compared to Italy or France,’ says Jonathan Saunders. Vevers agrees: ‘At Loewe, the head of the atelier has been there for 50 years, which means I’ve learnt really different cultural references from him. And that’s very precious – you feel you’re seeing into the soul of the company.’

Indeed, one of the main advantages a British designer working abroad has is their position as a

cultural spectator, an outsider. ‘Being foreign means that you’re not bogged down by a company’s heritage and history, so you can wipe the slate clean and start again,’ Vevers comments.

Yet none of the expats needs to fear geting lost in translation in their international roles. Vevers takes Spanish lessons twice a week – a far cry from life in Carlisle, his hometown. Nicholas Kirkwood commutes from London to a factory near Bologna for Pollini, where he says he speaks ‘shoe Italian’ and makes himself understood with sketches. In Munich, meanwhile, Saunders uses colour charts and fabric swatches when he can’t find the words.

Plucked from his graduate show by Donatella Versace, Christopher Kane has designed for Versus, the youthful arm of Versace, for the past three seasons. The atelier in Milan could not be further from the Glasgow of his youth or the modest studio in Dalston, East London, from which he turns out creations for his own-name label. No white-coated seamstresses assist him here. Just 28, he has brought Versus alive with his genius for cut and colour, and his collections are showing to great acclaim. Louise Wilson is a fan of his technical ability - a skill less and less common among contemporary designers: ‘Today, everything is farmed out. Someone else cuts the patern and someone else again supplies the fabrics. But even if Kane had no help, he could still make his garments. He has the talent.’ And Donatella Versace is certainly clear why she hired him: ‘He knows how to turn edgy and modern into reality.

He’s like my brother in that he understands how to make a woman look great. I don’t have to say it – he just knows. That’s the beauty of Christopher.’

Quite an endorsement.

It seems that, when it comes to making it big abroad, British designers must tick the boxes not only of youth and energy, ideas and skills, but also self-reliance. As Gareth Pugh says of his time at Central Saint Martins: ‘Louise trains her students to be resilient. I thought when I lef college that those would be the hardest and most stressful three years of my life. I was wrong.’ Perhaps - but he was prepared. Because these designers aren’t merely creative figureheads, nor do they just get the job done.

They can do wonders for a brand and, in the process, transform the entire fashion landscape. When Phoebe Philo presented wearable clothes for women, she set off a chain reaction, and, likewise, when Alexander McQueen’s vision took hold, theatrical drama was seen as the new way forward.

Of course, a prety dress brilliantly designed is never going to be the full story. Fashion is first and foremost a business – and never more so than in the current economic climate. Céline’s no-doubt-healthy profits will be reflective of Philo’s status as a style influencer of the highest order. The girl can do no wrong. One mustn’t forget, afer all, that it was she, in her time at Chloé, between 2001 and 2006, who designed the Paddington bag that was responsible for the doubling of the company’s sales. Similarly, Mulberry’s collaboration with Luella Bartley and Stuart Vevers in 2002 culminated in the Gisele, one of recent history’s most successful It-bags – a feat Vevers is no doubt hoping to repeat with his revival of Loewe’s Amazona bag. There’s good design, and then there are good profits, and it’s the later that pays the rent.

Giles Deacon is renowned for his atention to the business process, which made him a very atractive proposition to take over at Emanuel Ungaro. It’s not beneath him to know how much

‘Being foreign means that you’re not bogged down by heritage and history.

You can wipe the slate clean’

69

catwalking.com; derek hudson/contour photos; rex features; sølve sundsbø/art + commerce

Left: Giles Deacon, spring/summer 2010.

Below, from left: Ungaro (Giles Deacon); two looks from Céline (Phoebe Philo), all spring/ summer 2011

Opposite, from left: spring/summer 11 collections from Versus (Christopher Kane); Nina Ricci (Peter Copping);

and Loewe (Stuart Vevers); bag by Stuart Vevers at Loewe; Jonathan Saunders at work for Escada Sport

a buton costs and to work it into a business plan.

During his career-building time at Botega Veneta from 2000; the launch of his own label, Giles, in 2003; and the savvy Gold collection he recently created for New Look, he has always sweated the small stuff – all that, while winning every award going, including, in 2009, the highly prestigious ANDAM Grand Prix. To Ungaro’s probable relief, his feminine, draped frocks in subtle, neutral colours for the spring/summer 2011 collection did much to erase the traces of his much-criticised predecessor, ‘artistic adviser’ Lindsay Lohan, and restore credibility to the label.

Geographical boundaries count less and less in the world of fashion, especially these days, when some of the biggest buyers of luxury fashion are based in China and the newly emerging economies and just about every brand you can buy on Rue Saint-Honoré is also on sale in Shanghai.

But that makes it all the more salient that British design talent still holds such sway all over the world.

The appointment to Escada Sport of a designer as gifed with colour as Jonathan Saunders, for instance, appears a perfect piece of international matchmaking. His first collection is due out this June, and looks set to be a wise investment on the part of Megha Mital, the daughter-in-law of Indian billionaire Lakshmi Mital, who acquired Escada in 2009 and wants to reinvigorate the brand.

Today’s quick-to-pick-up-on-the-zeitgeist politicians have also spoted the goldmine of homegrown talent and are hurrying to avail themselves of its spoils. Afer all, the rag trade’s worth to the economy is a cool £21 billion. No wonder Minister for Communication, Culture and the Creative Industries Ed Vaizey was quoted as saying: ‘British fashion has the talent, creativity and skills to rival anywhere in the world. Our new and established designers and fashion labels are internationally renowned for their unique vision at the cuting edge of this hugely important global industry.’

Not that Louise Wilson is impressed by mere talk.

She recounts a recent meeting with a government official. ‘He told me that we’re a manufacturing country. I mean, really, is he blind?’

That’s as may be, but one thing’s for sure – even in these uncertain times, as long as Britain keeps its cool, our designers will continue to conquer fashionland at home and abroad.

Jo Craven writes on fashion for the Telegraph Magazine, Stella and Vogue

let’s go round again Over the decades, whenever the going gets tough, designers turn to disco chic to bring back the glamour and good times Photography Giampaolo Sgura Fashion editor Daniela Agnelli

Light relief Left White jacket with

mesh details, £1,150; white crepe de chine top, £600; white stretch canvas trousers, £825, all Gucci with adjuster Burberry trousers, STOCKISTS DETAILS ON PAGE 81

Boogie wonderland Previous page: Jumpsuit, £1,180; belt, £520; clutch bag, £1,610, all Gucci. Amber and gold choker, from a selection, Lynn Ban. Hammered gold ring (left hand), from £66, Kenneth Jay Lane. Rose-gold ring (right hand), from £2,154, Carla Amorim.

Gold cuff (left wrist), stylist’s own, Halston.

Gold cuff (right wrist), £193, Etro Do the hustle This page: Dress, £595, MaxMara. Belt, £745, Gucci. Shoes, £740, Yves Saint Laurent.

Earrings, price on application, Robert Lee Morris. Cuffs, as before Stayin’ alive Opposite: Jacket, £445, and trousers, £230, both Joseph. Gold choker, from a selection, Lynn Ban. Ring, price on application, Robert Lee Morris. Shoes, £845, Gucci

Le freak Opposite: One-shoulder dress, £1,135; gold cuff, £193, both Etro. Gold choker, from a selection, Lynn Ban. Shoes, £1,294, Donna Karan Good times This page: Top, £515; trousers, £600, both Chloé. Hat, £99, James Lock & Co. Gold collar, price on application, Robert Lee Morris.

Gold cuff (left wrist), from £69; gold V cuff (right wrist), from £36, Kenneth Jay Lane

Disco inferno This page: Cape, £5,300; jumpsuit, £3,400, both Louis Vuitton. Shoes, £795, Gianfranco Ferré.

Silver choker, £2,500; silver cuff, £580; silver and diamond cuff, £2,245, all Lynn Ban at Dover Street Market Ladies’ night Opposite: Dress, from £1,537, Halston. Gold collar and cuff (left wrist), both price on application, Robert Lee Morris. Gold cuff (right wrist), from £69, Kenneth Jay Lane.

Shoes, £1,100, Gianmarco Lorenzi

Night fever Opposite: Jumpsuit, £1,220; belt, £270, both Yves Saint Laurent.

Enamel earrings, from £27, Kenneth Jay Lane.

Gold bangles; gold bracelet, both price on application, Robert Lee Morris Hot stuff This page: Dress, £781; belt, £194, both Diane von Furstenberg. Gold choker, from a selection, Lynn Ban. White agate ring, £177, Kara by Kara Ross. Gold cuff (left wrist), from £69; gold V cuff (right wrist), from £36, both Kenneth Jay Lane. Shoes, £740, Yves Saint Laurent Stylist’s assistants Aurelia Donaldson and Olivia Kozlowski Hair Enrico Mariotti Make-up Jessica Nedza Manicurist Ana-Maria Model Jacqueline Jablonski at Supreme Management.

Shot on location at the Standard Hotel, New York STOCKISTS DETAILS ON PAGE 81

Embrace Nature. Choose Cotton. www.discovercottonusa.com

stockists

PhotograPhy: metz + racine Fashion stylist: Jane howard. ProP stylist: Vincent oliVieri

A American Apparel 020 7734 4477; americanapparel.net B Borovick Fabrics 020 7437 2180; borovickfabricsltd.co.uk Burberry 020 7986 0582; burberry.com C Carla Amorim at Astley Clarke 020 7706 0060; astleyclarke.com Cartier 020 3147 4850; cartier.com Céline at Browns 020 7514 0039; brownsfashion.com Cette at Tights Please tightsplease.co.uk Chanel 020 7493 5040; chanel.com Chloé 020 7823 5348; chloe.com Cutler & Gross 020 7581 2250; cutlerandgross.com

D D&G 020 7495 9250; dandgstore.com Debenhams 0844 561 6161; debenhams.com Diane von Furstenberg 020 7499 0886; dvf.com Dior 020 7172 0172; dior.com Dolce & Gabbana 020 7659 9000; dolcegabbana.com Donna Karan 020 7479 7900; donnakaran.com E Emporio Armani 020 7491 8080; emporioarmani.com Etro 020 7495 5767; etro.it F Falke falke.com G Gianfranco Ferré 020 7838 9576; gianfrancoferre.com Gianmarco Lorenzi 020 7493 2906; egofashionbox.com Giorgio Armani 020 7235 6232; giorgioarmani.com Giuseppe Zanotti Design 020 7838 9455; giuseppezanottidesign.com Gucci 020 7629 2716; gucci.com Guess guess.eu

Blue and black baroque sunglasses, £190, Prada.

Peach sunglasses, £279, Cutler & Gross

81

H Haider Ackermann at Browns 020 7514 0038; haiderackermann.be Halston halston.com Hermès 020 7499 8856; hermes.com House of Fraser 0845 602 1073; houseoffraser.co.uk J James Lock & Co 020 7930 8874; lockhatters.co.uk John Lewis 0845 604 9049; johnlewis.com Joseph 020 7610 8441, joseph.co.uk K Kara by Kara Ross at Harvey Nichols 020 7235 5000; harveynichols.com Kenneth Jay Lane at Harvey Nichols 020 7235 5000; harveynichols.com L Lanvin 020 7491 1839; lanvin.com Louis Vuitton 020 7399 4050; louisvuitton.com Lynn Ban at Dover Street Market 020 7518 0680; lynnban.com M Marc Jacobs marcjacobs.com Marni 020 7245 9520; marni.com MaxMara 020 7518 8010; maxmara.com Missoni 020 7352 2400; missoni.com Miu Miu 020 7409 0900; miumiu.com N Nicole Farhi 020 7036 7500; nicolefarhi.com O Oliver Peoples 020 7235 5000; oliverpeoples.com P Paco Rabanne at Dover Street Market 020 7518 0680; doverstreetmarket.com Prada 020 7647 5000; prada.com Prada at David Clulow 0844 264 0870; davidclulow.com R Ralph Lauren 020 7535 4600; ralphlauren.co.uk Robert Lee Morris neimanmarcus.com S Smythson 0845 873 2435; smythson.com T Thomas Sabo thomassabo.com V Valentino 020 7893 8092; valentino.com Versace 020 7259 5700; versace.com Y Yves Saint Laurent 020 7493 1800; ysl.com

82 heroine

Clockwise from below: Amy Johnson, aged 19, waving to crowds in Australia, after her solo flight from Britain; flying an air ferry in 1939

Having the opportunity to break a record

on 5 May 1930, and landed in Darwin,

seriously at first. And, of course, it was

is an incredible incentive. Amy Johnson

Australia, on 24 May, not only a record-

very easy to dismiss me because at the

became the first woman to fly solo from

breaker, but a celebrity too. The seed for

time I had nothing to back myself up. But

Britain to Australia in 1930, just a year

her status as a feminist icon was sown.

female mountaineers are pushing

after she gained her pilot’s licence. Amy

Setting her first record only two years after

boundaries now. It’s an exciting time.

knew that no woman had made the flight

British women were given the vote on the

solo before, and she thought, if I don’t do

same terms as men, she changed and

bravery and tenacity. There were moments

this, someone else will, so why shouldn’t

challenged conceptions about what women

on Everest when I would hear ice falling

it be me? Pioneers aren’t born with great

should be, and what we could achieve.

nearby, and the ground would shake

skill and unparalleled bravery, but maybe

Amy went on to set and break

I am hugely inspired by Amy’s

beneath me. In that kind of situation it

they are born with a special kind of

further records, but her career was not

would be easy to let fear take over. I’ve

determination. Selfishness even. I know

without calamity. She had several

learnt to stay calm, and that panicking

that from the moment I decided to climb

near-misses, including a crash landing on

only makes things worse. I have a constant

Mount Everest I believed I could do it. There

a flight from South Wales to America with

internal dialogue – telling myself to keep

was no doubt in my mind. I would wake

her aviator husband Jim Mollison, that

going, to breathe slowly, that I know what

up and tell myself every morning, I can do

saw them both end up in hospital. They

I’m doing and to trust myself.

this, and I will do this. I wasn’t a natural

divorced a few years later, and Amy joined

climber, or more physically able than

the auxiliary forces to help with the war

awarded to a child in her hometown of

anyone else, I just knew that if I worked

effort. It was on a routine delivery mission

Hull who shows exceptional bravery.

hard I could do it.

from Blackpool to Kidlington, near Oxford,

When I go in to schools to talk, I always

that she met a tragic death aged just 37,

tell the students that if I can climb

1903, the same year Emmeline Pankhurst

straying off-course in bad weather and

Everest, then they can too. I didn’t start

formed the Women’s Social and Political

crashing into the Thames estuary. She

off with exceptional skill, I had to really

Union, and the suffragette movement

drowned before she could be rescued.

push myself to do it. Amy wasn’t born a

Amy Johnson was born in Hull in

entered a new and more high-profile phase.

More than 80 years later, I am

Amy initiated a trophy that is

talented pilot, but she had ambition and

Having always harboured an interest in

following a path paved by women such

aeronautics, Johnson convinced her father

as Amy. Mountaineering is a very male-

to help her buy her first plane, a second-

dominated activity, and being young,

Bonita Norris, 23, is currently seeking

hand de Havilland Gipsy Moth for £600,

blonde and female didn’t necessarily

sponsorship for a record-breaking expedition

which she named ‘Jason’ after her father’s

work in my favour. People were surprised

to the South Pole with an all-British,

fish business trademark. Amy left Croydon

by me, and certainly didn’t take me

all-female team

drive and she worked at it.

REx FEATURES; BETTMAnn/CORBIS. BOnITA nORRIS WAS TAlKInG TO SARAH DEEKS

Bonita Norris became the youngest British woman to climb Mount Everest last year – and she says she couldn’t have done it without the inspiration of pioneering women such as Amy Johnson

Animal print maxi dress £65, Cream clutch bag £28, Floral belted dress £65, Black clutch bag £28. All Star by Julien Macdonald.

0588

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