Following Coachella and the Met Gala, Glastonbury is the latest cultural institution to be canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak. The festival, which takes place in England every summer, made the decision earlier today ahead of April 1, when customers were scheduled to pay for the rest of their ticket deposits.
“Clearly this was not a course of action we hoped to take for our 50th anniversary event, but following the new government measures announced this week – and in times of such unprecedented uncertainty – this is now our only viable option,” the festival said in a statement.
Tickets purchased for this year’s festival will roll over for Glastonbury 2021. Headliners for this year included Taylor Swift, Kendrick Lamar, Diana Ross, and Paul McCartney. You can read the full statement here.
It’s hard to believe that JW Anderson, the surrealist British brand founded by Jonathan Anderson who doubles as the creative director for Loewe, never had a flagship store in London. Since its launch in 2008, the label has become massively popular throughout the world, was the first to live stream a fashion show on Grindr, and even landed an ongoing partnership with Uniqlo before it set up shop in its hometown. That all changes today with the opening of the first JW Anderson store in the city’s SoHo neighborhood.
“Ever since I moved to London from Northern Ireland I have been in love with Soho. There is an incredible energy in the area. It feels quintessentially London to me,” Anderson said in a statement. For the new 13,000-square foot store’s interior, the designer worked with architectural firm 6a to create a unique atmosphere that utilizes the building’s industrial aesthetic while paying homage to the neighborhood’s historic nightlife scene.
JW Anderson is open now at 2 Brewer Street, London W1F 0SA.
It’s been just over two years since King Krule’s last record, the critically-acclaimed genre-blurring The Ooz. In the years since the British artist became a father and released a short film, Hey World!. Now the King returns with a new album Man Alive! set for release later this month.
Ahead of the drop, the artist debuted a video for “Alone, Omen 3,” a song first used in his aforementioned short film. Directed by Jocelyn Anquetil, the music video follows Krule as he talk-sings his way across the British coast and contemplates a new chapter in his life as many men in their mid-20s are wont to do. The sparse airy arrangement is the perfect backdrop as he reminds the viewer “don’t forget you’re not alone.”
Watch the video for “Alone, Omen 3” below. Man Alive! is out on February 21.
At the end of last year, Daniel W. Fletcher was announced as the new men’s artistic director for Fiorucci. The beloved Italian brand has been working on a comeback since 2017 following the death of its eponymous founder, with a series of pop-up shops and a newly opened flagship store in London setting the foundation for a full revival. The appointment of a cool British designer (Fletcher launched his own namesake line in 2016) was a logical next step and after looking at the first menswear line under his eye, it’s easy to see why.
Fiorucci has always been a fun and cheeky label and Fletcher understands this, referencing the designer’s most recognizable imagery from its extensive catalog. The famous baby face print is featured on a black T-shirt paired with some glossy vinyl jeans. There’s also a full vinyl jacket and pants look in baby blue. Elsewhere, the brand indicates its return with a bang (almost literally) with a repeating motif of comic-like explosive graphics and all-over logo prints. A pair of stone-washed jeans with the designer’s name stamped across the crotch is classic Fiorucci as seen by Fletcher. It’s a fresh yet honorable succession for the designer and a promising glimpse at what’s in store for the second coming of the designer. Take a look at some of the looks below.
Reese Cooper represents the next generation of designers. A new era of DIY is upon us — instead of having to formally learn the tools of the trade from a prestigious art school, young and sartorially interested people can now access valuable tools and resources on the internet to spearhead their own fashion education at their own, often fairly rapid, pace.
Cooper, the man behind the eponymous label, has done just that. At only 21, he has built a brand out of passion and sheer drive and elevated it into the industry consciousness and high-end institutions like Saks Fifth Avenue. Born in Florida, he spent his childhood in Atlanta before moving to London in his early teens. There, he cut his teeth and began his informal and hands-on fashion education with a local seamstress.
“London was where I learned the basics—I didn’t even know what a pattern was. But I would work with this local seamstress who basically taught me everything,” he says. She took the reins on sewing but encouraged him to try things out for himself. Soon enough, he was producing his own pieces and laying the foundation for his brand. “Basically figuring out how to make anything that wasn’t just a printed T-shirt.”
Fall/Winter 2019 “Hitchhiking”
In 2016, he launched his ready-to-wear menswear label and relocated to Los Angeles—his first time visiting the city. Yet despite his preference to existing outside the “weird bubble of LA brands” (think palm trees on leather jackets and Goop), there’s an overt American identity to this work.
Following a handful of capsule releases, Reese Cooper made its official debut during Paris Fashion Week in January 2018. Dubbed “Lone Pine,” the inaugural collection was a reinterpretation of classic outdoor staples, including denim, flannels, and sturdy knit sweaters, anchored by a quintessential token of American boyhood: a varsity jacket.
“That piece represents the first steps of everything for me,” he says. “I never went to any sort of school for this, so that was a way to essentially wear the flag of the self-taught stuff.”
Fall/Winter 2019 “Hitchhiking”
His work is a synthesis of every influence that inspired him to make clothing in the first place. There are elements of streetwear—his earliest fashion experience was working at the Bape store in London—and functional workwear pieces are a recurring theme, a result of his nomadic lifestyle. “I liked to make stuff that I could basically keep everything that I need on me at all times,” he says.
Reese Cooper operates slightly outside the traditional fashion cycle—rather than collections that align with specific market seasons, the brand focuses on concepts that weave together a larger narrative. “It’s picking a scenario and styling the scene of the story,” he says. “It’s like following one thing to the next, so everything evolves as this journey progresses.”
Fall/Winter 2019 “Hitchhiking”
Earlier this year, the brand progressed with its first venture into womenswear, which Cooper describes as “more adventurous.” Each passing collection sets the tone for the next, and as he continues to take more risks, he gives brand followers the opportunity to watch the label grow with him.
This type of narrative thinking allows him to imagine collections far in the future. “I think I know usually four seasons ahead what is happening,” he shares. “Not how everything will look, but the direction I want to take, which is a really nice way to think about it.”
Despite this prescient mentality, he is constantly learning and observing what his peers are up to. “I feel like it’s my job to pay attention, so I definitely know what everyone is doing all the time,” he says. He might be thinking seasons ahead, but he manages to remain present.
“I love moving fast, but it’s also hard when everyone else is moving at the same pace,” he says. It’s true—the industry is moving faster than before. But with his eyes on the prize, Reese Cooper shows no signs of slowing down any time soon. “Let’s do the next one. Let’s keep it pushing.”
This winter Comme des Garçons is doubling down on its all-black aesthetic with a dark new pop-up shop in London. After debuting in Tokyo earlier this year, the CDG Black Market has arrived at Dover Street Market London. The new store concept is the latest in a series of initiatives in celebration of the store’s 15th anniversary and features a vast range of products and CDG collaborations with a number of brands including Burberry, Gucci, Casio, and Porter. And after Dior released its own black BMX bike in 2017, the Japanese designer is releasing its own version in collaboration Kuwahara BMX, decked out in “CDG Black Market” branding. With the holidays in full swing, it’s clear that Comme des Garçons is dreaming of a black Christmas indeed.
CDG Black Market is open now at 18-22 Haymarket, London SW1Y 4DG.
Earlier today, designer Daniel W. Fletcher announced he would be joining Fiorucci as the new Menswear Artistic Director in an Instagram post. He also revealed that he would present his first collection for the Italian label in January as part of London Fashion Week Men’s.
Fletcher is a British designer who graduated from the prestigious Central Saint Martins and spent time working at Louis Vuitton, Burberry, and Lanvin before launching his own eponymous label in 2015. His designs are recognized for their slender fits and nuanced interpretations of sportswear and traditional English staples and have been stocked in Opening Ceremony stores around the world.
Fiorucci was one of the most popular Italian brands of the late 20th century, renowned for its notorious cheeky advertisements that helped redefine the denim campaign template for years to come. However, mismanagement and legal troubles led to the label’s ultimate decline, and after founder Elio Fiorucci passed away in 2015 it was sold to Janie Schaffer — a former CEO of Victoria’s Secret — and her husband Stephen Schaffer. The pair began plans to revive the brand in early 2017 with a string of pop-up shops in London before opening a new three-story flagship later that year. By combining the public hunger for nostalgia with a fresh new designer perspective, the future of Fiorucci looks promising in 2020.
Earlier this summer, designer Christopher Kane debuted its ‘More Joy’ capsule. The limited-run collection was inspired by pleasure and passion (wink wink) and featured non-fashion items including beach towels, tape, and sleeping masks. Following its massive success, the designer is bringing back the collection with a holiday twist in a new pop-up shop in London. (More) Joy to the world, indeed.
The temporary space in Shoreditch is a minimal layout that highlights the bold simplicity of the range, allowing customers to peruse some of the staple pieces from the range, including pajama sets, scarves, and socks. For the holidays, the designer added some new seasonal additions, including wrapping paper and tree ornaments both printed with words like ‘Sex’ and ‘Joy.’ A range of holiday greeting cards is also available at the pop-up, with proceeds from each sold benefitting Whitechapel Mission, a non-profit that helps homeless people.
The Christopher Kane ‘More Joy’ pop-up is open now at 100 Shoreditch High Street, London, E1 6JN.
In the last decade, Vans has enjoyed a cultural renaissance. The Californian-based shoe brand has evolved from the shoe of choice for skaters and emo kids to a verified fashion statement donned by editors and models off and on duty. To top off this reappraisal (and the end of the decade), Vans is opening its largest European store on Oxford Street in London.
Slated to open next week, the brand’s new flagship will measure at almost 5000-square feet. In addition to serving as a one-stop-shop for everything Vans — this means apparel, skateboard accessories, and more — the expansive store will also house a customization lab so customers can personalize their shoes on-site. Because even though they might be among the most popular shoes in the world, why risk being caught wearing the same ones as everyone else?
Vans will open its new store on November 21 at 214 Oxford Street, London, W1D 1LA.
Partnering with Griffin Studio, a UK-based carbon-neutral design agency, Woolrich has updated its signature outerwear with enhanced performance materials. The duo worked with Italian sportswear fabric maker Majocchi on a new Zero Water process, and with some additional collaboration from Seaqual, an organization that combats marine pollution, they successfully created a polyester material using recycled plastic.
The seven-piece capsule honors Woolrich’s signature outerwear but updates it with new sustainably produced materials. Classic brand motifs include the red and black buffalo print and the bright colorways ensure that the winter attire is anything but dreary.
The Woolrich x Griffin Studio collection is available at select stores and online now. Learn more about the innovative production process in the video above.
Since its inception in 1854, travel has remained at the heart of Louis Vuitton‘s legacy. Celebrating its globetrotting reputation, the designer is releasing an updated collection of its City Guides for the holidays.
Louis Vuitton published the first editions of its 30 City Guides in 1998 but is updating them for 2019 since a lot has changed since the turn of the millennium. Each guide has been edited with additional travel destinations as chosen by a roster of global journalists. Some of the available guides include Beijing, Lisbon, London, Moscow, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Seoul, Singapore, and Tokyo.
The designer is also releasing two additional book collections: Travel Books and Fashion Eye. The Travel Books set includes additional odes to beloved cities around the world, while each Fashion Eye title features photographs that best capture and reflect different destinations.
The Louis Vuitton City Guides, Travel Books, and Fashion Eye books are available in stores and online now.
