When Emilia Wickstead starts While researching ideas for uniforms and work, visual artist Man Ray was quick to add these points to Lee Miller’s spirit and style, a regular reference point on Wickstead’s mood boards. “She’s the consummate erudite: artist, muse, model, surrealist, journalist, Vogue photographer and the first female war correspondent,” Wickstead conducts her runway show at her new store on Sloane Street said when. , the venue for this season’s video presentations.
As Wickstead explains, the series touches on many aspects of Miller’s career, but above all her steadfast independence and freedom to cross those different worlds. Most obviously, the idea of the uniform is embodied in oversized shirts with neat boyish collars and practical flap pockets, glamorous in the most sheer organza, and beige wide-leg pants in silk satin, instead of ordinary cotton.
Miller’s sensuality and her love affair with Man Ray are explored through off-the-shoulder looks, glimpses at the foundation, and a sense of unraveling; The fabric peels off. One of the most interesting references is how Wickstead approached Miller’s seminal photographic techniques. Miller and Ray discovered “solarization,” a process that gives photographs a ghostly, glowing, and surreal quality. Wickstead used this as a way to experiment with print. Her paintings of floral motifs on silk are blurred, covered in printed organza, and become more distorted; the effect, she notes, is as soft as a lens coated with Vaseline. The pleats were also deformed; either stitched back or dropped in rebellious pleats rather than rigid linear forms.
This is a collection of various shapes and silhouettes, from strict fit and perfect cut to relaxed and loose; From miniskirts to maxi dresses with trains. Others were full and the floor skimmed. Overall, it’s feminine and formal, but with a spicy edge and an undercurrent of modernity—sometimes even a little lively. It’s this ingenious and precise balance that ensures Wickstead’s clothes don’t veer in any direction.
There is also a great new bag. Wickstead presents her own luxe version of the plastic tote, crafted from rigid sheer tulle with silk-satin piping around the edges. It comes in nude, black and white, and her clients will definitely want all three. “No matter what Miller turns her hands on, she’s totally into it and does a fantastic job,” she said. Much like Wickstead, in fact: She oversaw the design of the impressive checkerboard-style terracotta marble store that opened this summer. Her products have expanded into multiple categories. In addition to ready-to-wear, tailored and bridal wear, as well as pajamas, shoes, swimwear and holiday wear, she will soon launch tabletop products including plates and cutlery, crystal glassware and sheets. This is a world you really want to live in.
