Day 3 at GFW 2004

On the penultimate day of the Graduate Fashion week in London’s Battersea Park, our reporter Didi Okoli, spent the morning ‘behind the scenes’ of the annual event, catching up with exhibitors, designers and course tutors.

The first thing to hit you when you walk into the marquee is the heat and the colour.

The variety of the exhibitors’ stands shows the efforts that have gone into the displays.  The Arts Institute at Bournemouth get my vote for the best exhibit (excluding London Fashion Forum). “Very Laura Ashley-ish”, I say to Hannah Ward, final year student.  I’m told it is.  The walls are maroon printed in beautiful floral patterns of wallpaper. (Me thinks they had money to spend on this one.)  “We wanted to stand out; we’ve used some of our designs on the furniture such as prints on the lampshades and cushions”.

   

 

     

Bournemouth

University of Leeds took a different approach to their display.  Course leader, David Backhouse explains, “We chose a clinical theme, everything is plain white, the only colour comes from the portfolios’, we wanted the students work to stand out, with no other distractions.”

Leeds College of Art and Design

This is David’s’ fifth year at GFW and when asked if he noticed a rise in trade and press figures he said “if anything there is less than last year, if not less maybe they’re not going around the stands as much.”

Linnette Cook is a fashion lecturer at Croydon College.  Their stand was in an ideal location, possibly the best spot in the marquee; the colours and arrays of textures are on display as soon as you enter.  “It was just luck” she says modestly “We’re not even showing, as our students’ timetable runs differently and so their collections are not ready.  June 23rd is our big three day event at the Whitgift centre in Croydon.”

Highs and lows?  “The high, has to be are position and the low, most of the people walking round are students, so its students looking at students work as opposed to industry professionals offering my students work!”
 
In the midst of the colour and chaos, I bumped into a very busy David Jones by the London Fashion Forum stand. Here’s what he had to say;

“Its day three at Graduate Fashion Week and it’s a delight whilst still very hot, not as oppressive as the last two days attendance continues to be good and I’m always delighted when I see so many people at the static shows, and the brilliant work of the students from the 30 plus colleges on display.

The London Fashion Forum is in its third year of life and it’s the first time we have a stand at this event.  As both director of LFF and London Apparel Resource Centre, I’m delighted with the interest shown in the services we offer, from trade, press and ex-graduates in their quest to build their careers.

The catwalk shows continue to be well supported and I recognise a quality in each of them and have noticed how innovative but increasingly commercial, the designs are this year.  This possibly reflects just how difficult it is out there in the development of fashion in the industry.

There is however, a real positive attitude and I’m confident that the work displayed will result in worthwhile opportunities for many people.

Finally, on behalf of every visitor I’d like to say a big thank you to TOPSHOP for the continuing supply of bottled water, which made the event a good deal more pleasant than it could have been.”