Jonathan Anderson’s Loewe, now officially the world’s hottest brand, according to Lyst, forms a canon of work that makes a like-for-like comparative almost impossible. Indeed, the brand’s narrative arc is so broad and far-reaching that a suitable metric, put simply, does not exist. From ready-to-wear and accessories, manga collabs to film merch, fragrance and home fragrance to soap on a rope, Loewe operates within a space of its own creation – ever expanding, never compromising.
Here, we focus on the shoppable now and a précis of the standout AW24 season: handbags and frock coats, big-shoulder jackets, shoes and those incredible trousers. Seen here, worn by model Agel Akol and shot by Vanina Sorrenti, these knockout voluminous numbers have a horseshoe shape – but that shape changes. On the short walk from changing room to set, the trousers were “spinning” and “moving around the leg”.
The fabric comes with a sort of imprinted memory; children of the 1980s will remember the Slinky toy, a Google search away. Anderson explores fashion that is performative: clothes made for an entrance. Or an office that’s also a disco. These new oscillating trousers come “grounded” with a spectacular evening jacket and its beaded lapel. It’s an Instagram meme waiting to happen, or it’s one already. The satirical churn of social media-generated memes is a creative space that Anderson meditates on regularly, seemingly (and puzzlingly) finding inspiration by tuning into the daily bleurgh other designers dismiss. It’s here that he finds fanciful titbits and unlikely gems, all of which bring a unique flavour to a far bigger cultural soup. His remit is one of exhaustive research, classical art meets social studies. Craft! Design! Technique!
