The foundations of fashion

**Hit the
high street
**
High street shoppers definitely can’t complain about staying stale and dilapidated this autumn. The deities of high fashion have descended from above to give high street looks a prominent face-lift.
H&M has probably been the most high-fashion friendly of all high street brands, collaborating with such titans as Karl Lagerfeld, Stella McCartney and Donatella Versace since 2004. This fall H&M has continued making haute couture more affordable with the infamous editor of Vogue Japan, Anna Dello Russo designing a set of accessories, jewellery and clothes for the Swedish brand, encapsulating lavish baroque fantasies (and yes, singing that very catchy song ‘You Need a Fashion Shower’).
Even more sensational is the launch of a unique collection of fashion pieces especially for H&M by one of the most secretive and iconic fashion brands, Maison Martin Margiela. Having provoked an incredible amount of press attention long before its launch party at New York’s Beekman’s Street Palace, these pieces are well worth snapping up.
Another rising star in the world of fashion design, JW Anderson, revealed his “fun, accessible and easy” collection for Topshop recently, which he himself labels as “a bridge between craft and modernity”. The clothes have been a huge success and some of the pieces are already sold out online. Who said that the merge of low and high art is not always a good thing?

**More model behaviour**

The A/W season has definitely managed to fulfil its early promise, offering a number of unforgettable fashion campaigns. The online giant ASOS has definitely made this Christmas more fancy for their female clients, making a trending LA model Charlotte Free, along with the singers Azealia Banks and Ellie Goulding, stars of the new ASOS womenswear Christmas campaign #BestNightEver.
On a bigger scale, Cara Delevingne and Saskia de Brauw, some of the hottest names in the modeling world, became the faces of Chanel Cruise 2013 Collection Campaign. Set in an opulent boudoir, the campaign was shot by the brand’s mastermind himself, Karl Lagerfeld, and opens with an overt channeling of love for 18th century French aristocracy.
Yet what was probably one of the most prolific autumn campaigns was the one beautifully executed by Dolce and Gabbana. Against a backdrop of Italian streets, famous Italian divas such as Monica Bellucci, Bianca Balti and Bianca Brandolini star as sophisticated family women, dressed in baroque prints and elaborate lace.

**Fashion icon means Iris Apfel**

At the age of 91, Iris Apfel is a legend who definitely goes her own way, trailed by an endless parade of designers, fashion bloggers and models who are ready to fall at her feet.
Apfel notoriously found fame at the age of 83, when the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York took notice of her eccentric and subversive style and staged an exhibition of her wardrobe.
Eight years later, Apfel continues to impress the public with her forward-thinking combination of ethnic and glamorous garments that are brimming with colour and vitality.
As New York Times critic Roberta Smith pointed out, “Before multiculturalism was a word, Mrs Apfel was wearing it”. This autumn Dazed and Confused made Apfel their most mature cover star to date, celebrating everything that is good about fashion – individuality, expression and selflessness.
Apfel encapsulates all of the above, breaking all the boundaries, creating her own rules and making the entire fashion world wait for her to change into another outfit.

**Know your Mario Testino from your Tim Walker**

As I said earlier, this autumn is all about celebration, and in the world of fashion photography there has been a real fete. Two of the world’s most renowned photographers – Tim Walker and Mario Testino – have exhibited their works to the public eye, looking back at the accumulation of beauty, style and icons that their cameras have managed to deftly depict over the years.
London based Tim Walker, a Bertold Brecht of modern photography, recently displayed his works in the East Wing Galleries of London’s Somerset House. This fabulous collection reminded us again how, during a career spanning over 15 years, he managed to become one of the most prolific A-list photographers, with British and Italian Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, W Magazine and Vanity Fair his regular clients.
Tim Walker’s works display the fabulous and absurd at the same time, envoking a dreamscape of beauty and elegance through captivating imperfection.
Mario Testino, most-sought after photographer of modern times, recreates a world of fashion magazines in an exhibition entitled ‘In Your Face’ which is displayed at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; glamour and poise captivate you from the very first pieces.
Over 30 years Testino has shot such superstars as Kate Moss, Mick Jagger, Madonna, Lady Gaga and David Beckham, creating some of the most compelling and desirable visual stories in modern photography.