London College of Fashion Masters Roundup by Sean McGirr

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Kicking off with a collection comprising only of black, Keiko Kida gave us an insight into the softer side of sadism with loosely reworked suiting and cleverly constructed quilted coats. The sinister mood was further highlighted by use of a beautiful technical mesh and irregular shaped headpieces creating a shield on certain areas of the face.

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Next was Wouter Bartmaans who gave a slightly relaxed youth to manhood quality through oversized overcoats, cinched in waists and an emphasis on the collar. It worked well as the variations in the double collars seemed slightly avant-garde but obviously wearable. Somewhere in the collection lay the Jack the Ripper of last season’s McQueen and next season’s retro-inspired Prada menswear.

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Domingo Rodriguez gave us a glimpse into his beautifully soft and somber idea of the male. Proving that confidence doesn’t need to be created through drama, clean lines formed an understated completely modern silhouette. Through loose and hanging garments and his use of cashmere, silks, and furs the collection demonstrated a very simplistic but personal approach to menswear. Elements such as knitted gloves in charcoal grey and the rever-less blazers (My personal favourite) gave a great impression of class meets comfort.

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The glitterati gazed in a glazed wonderment when Steve Corcoran’s mirror emblazoned looks started walking out. The light beamed high ceiling and marble walls drawing the onlooker’s eyes towards the models. The high standard of tailoring was obvious through the subtle military elements in the coats. Garments were saturated in many shades of nude and shattered mirror created the brand identity as the models gave off a certain level of innocence.

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Long, voluminous skirts and cropped blazers formed the essence of Thomas Miller‘s fine example of dandy meets samurai masochist. The huge bellowing silhouette was perfected by cinched in waists and narrow shoulders. The collection which was mostly made up of evening wear pieces was styled brilliantly as variations of travel cases designed by Sarah Williams added a touch of modernity.

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The MA collection of the year was awarded to a menswear student, Sven Hoppe, who channeled the Jews journey from Paris to Auschwitz as part of his inspiration. He delivered a very cohesive collection with loose over garments shining through and a  fusing of textures from latex to cashmere wool blending together perfectly.