CELEBRATING 30 YEARS OF NEWGENS CREATIVE TALENT
15.09.2023
NEWGEN30 is a celebration of 30 years of emerging fashion designers, this print has been kindly donated by a NEWGEN Alumni designer.
Thank you for buying this bag and supporting the next generation of young designers in the UK through the British Fashion Council Foundation (Registered Charity Number 1185152), a donation from each bag goes directly to the charity.
AHLUWALIA: BEHIND THE DESIGN
What season is the donated print from?
Joy print: SS21, 'A' logo print: SS23.
What is the inspiration/story behind your print?
SS21 'Liberation':
Mixing references from the 1960s protests in Nigeria with illustrated infographics about Black Americans by W. E. B. Du Bois, this collection features elaborate prints and graphics designed in collaboration with Dennis McInnes.
Joy print: The joy print is inspired by traditional Nigerian print, specifically Ankara fabric.
SS23 'Africa Is Limitless':
At the heart of SS23, are the boundless and enduring marks of the African people and their cultures. SS23 was the creation of a vast visual tapestry, inspired by everything from vintage museum blankets from Tunisia, to technicolour Sapeurs, album covers from Cote d'Ivoire and beaded elements from Kenyan and Rwandan cultures. With 'Africa Is Limitless', Ahluwalia celebrates the nations of Africa’s many individual stories as a testament that all Africans know it to be: a vast wonderland of cultural innovation, rich in stories and histories that have waited too long to be told authentically.
'A' logo print: The 'A' logo print is composed of multiple motifs that represent different elements of cultures in Africa.
What do you want the viewer to feel when they see your prints?
We hope to inspire, and spark curiosity to learn more about the collection and concept.
How do you translate your prints into wearable clothing?
The prints are used in many ways across the collection. In these examples, they were used as laser artwork for denim pieces, as well as printed onto fabric to create an all over print.
Other techniques used for our prints include weaving the prints into jacquard fabrics, or used as artworks for knitwear.
CHRISTOPHER KANE: BEHIND THE DESIGN
What season is the donated print from?
SS22
What is the inspiration/story behind your print?
The floral itself is called The Psyche Floral, it was a nod to 1970’s floral bedspreads and psychedelics. The print is both at one playful and subversive.
What are the different elements of this print?
Colour is the primary element; it was designed to be bold and attractive. It is a print that people are drawn to.
What do you want the viewer to feel when they see your prints?
To sense joy and positive energy.
How do you translate your prints into wearable clothing?
It just has to feel right, it is instinct when choosing a design.
HALPERN: ABOUT THE DESIGNER
Michael Halpern is London-based designer whose eponymous brand Halpern is synonymous with uncashed glamour, reimagined embellishment and sense of hyper-felinity with a nod to classical couture.
He began his career in his hometown of New York, after graduating with his BA from the Parsons School of Design he worked leading design teams for two years in the city. Michael then embarked on a journey to grow his personal vision, joining the Masters programme at Central Saint Martins in London, where he continued to refine the aesthetic that endures throughout his collections today. His celebrated MA collection gained much attention, including that of Versace, and after graduation, Michael was hired to consult on the couture collection, Atelier Versace. It was during his time at Versace that he developed his eponymous brand, Halpern.
Deputing during the Autumn/Winter 2017 shows at London Fashion Week, the critically acclaimed presentation was immediately bought by top International retailers and is currently stocked in over 30 of the top retailers globally.
Acknowledged by The Business of Fashion as one of their BOF 500 and also at the 2017 Fashion Awards, recognised by the British Fashion Council as the Emerging Talent in their Womenswear category. Michael Halpern has established himself nor only a go-to evening wear and red carpet designer, having dressed the likes of Adwoa About, Marion Cotillard, Amal Clooney, Diane Kruger and Lupita Nyong’o, but also a highlight of the London show schedule and a master of his craft.
GILES DEACON: BEHIND THE DESIGN
What is the inspiration / story behind your print?
To celebrate the New Gen 30 project, I wanted to design a new bespoke print that represented me in the manner of a heraldic coat of arms.
The bold graphic symbolism is a signature and playfully incorporates the Pineapple as a historic London reference and the scroll for a sense of theatrical, all hand drawn by myself.
‘Bold, striking, recognisable and conversational patterns are my go-to and I hope this one for NEWGEN fits the bill, I am looking forward to seeing them the streets of London and a far this autumn”.
ERDEM: ABOUT THE DESIGNER
Erdem Moralioglu is renowned for his experimental textiles and craftsmanship. Notable clients include Kate Middleton, Michelle Obama, Alexa Chung, and Arizona Muse.
Born in Canada in 1976 to a British mother and Turkish father, Moralioglu moved to London to pursue his fashion career. After graduating from Ryerson University in 1995, he interned at Vivienne Westwood's London office and received a scholarship from the British Council to study at the Royal College of Art. Graduating from RCA, he interned with Diane von Furstenberg in New York in 2004.
In 2005, Erdem debuted at London Fashion Week's Fashion Fringe. Subsequent years featured collaborations with Mackintosh, awards from Swarovski and the British Fashion Council, and support from the BFC's Fashion Forward fund. Claudia Schiffer and Barney's Julie Gilhart wore Erdem dresses to the Met Ball in 2006.
In 2009, Erdem collaborated with Globe Trotter, Cutler and Gross for sunglasses, and created limited edition designs for Smythson. He won the Elle Fashion Awards' fashion future prize. The following year, he secured the British Fashion Council and Vogue designer fashion fund prize for the second time.
In 2011, Erdem launched an exclusive capsule collection at Net-A-Porter. In 2012, he collaborated with Topshop on a T-shirt for the brand's 10-year anniversary sponsoring the British Fashion Council's NEWGEN scheme.
Erdem's focus is on making women look beautiful through timeless silhouettes and proportions, not following trends.
MARY KATRANTZOU: BEHIND THE DESIGN
What season is donated print from?
The print is from the Mary katrantzou FW2011 Collection, titled 'Objects of Art'.
What is the inspiration/story behind your print?
The prints in this collection were inspired by several artefacts (Vases, tapestries, porcelains and rugs) from several time periods and regions from around the world. A study in the beauty of trinkets and collectibles. This print, named 'Dynasty' features a rooster and is takes inspiration from traditional chinese porcelains, the rooster having several connotations in Chinese culture including Luck. It was used in several pieces in the collection across various silhouettes, including the opening look of the show.
Can you share any imagery/video content of this print in use?
Images attached to email from our archive, photographed by Yannis Vlamos.
What are the different elements of this print?
The print consists of Sprigs of Delicate florals centred around a painterly rooster in an ivory base.
What do you want the viewer to feel when they see your prints?
Prints should always be exciting and fun and spark conversation. Wearing print is bold and expressionistic and the wearer should always feel confident!
ROKSANDA: BEHIND THE DESIGN
What season is the donated print from?
Autumn Winter 2021
What is the inspiration/story behind your print?
Richly diverse in structure and colour palette, the Autumn Winter 2021 Collection celebrates a vitality and optimism... Playing on the deeply artistic heritage of the brand, dresses are skilfully constructed out of silk scarves featuring hand-drawn details, inspired from paintings created at our London studio. Artfully reimagined from paper to print these graphic forms are further brought to life with the inclusion of bold female nude figures printed onto magnificent silk twill gowns in sunflower and ivory bringing themes of femininity and empowerment to the fore...
What are the different elements of this print?
Life drawings of nudes in pencil and Indian ink surrounded by paper collage in primary colours.
What do you want the viewer to feel when they see your prints?
Optimism, femininity and empowerment.
