LFW – A La Disposition S/S 2013 presentation

Designing couple Daniel Kinne and Lynda Cohen, former teachers at the Parson’s School of Design in New York City, had me literally at hello. Their show invite was one of this season’s crops most original: a sleeve that opens to release a clutch of pop-up boxes each sporting an individual design.

A La Disposition have been showing in London (where they are now based) for the last several years, and the duo who began with collections based around the corset have moved forward somewhat from this aesthetic, but still have one foot firmly in the past inspired by classic, historical designs and transforming them by releasing these designs from their traditional structures through modern, exaggerated design.

The  SS13 collection is entitled Misfit toys, and was displayed fittingly in the Royal Opera House’s Crush Room, on life-size dolls to a soundtrack reminiscent to that of an eerie carnival come to town.  Patterns and styles from Victorian childhood doll collections have been given the A La Disposition touch and whilst the heritage of the silhouette, from footwear to garment to gown is evident, each looks thoroughly modern through the use of bright colours and the designer’s structured avant-garde re-rendering of the original looks. 

Nautical stripes, heavy checks and polka dots all feature in the collection and are emphasised by the use of bright colours. Design features such as prism structures applied to shoulders and a bat wing style ensemble, combined with puffy, bubble skirts create an eye-catching three dimensional quality. Ultra-modern touches such as sneaker heel boots and spiked heel shoes have been employed to give a complementing yet contrasting and thoroughly urban/modern edge to the looks.

A sense of vaudeville theatricality prevails; these are not your everyday clothes, unless perhaps you are the late great Anna Piaggi or pop’s ultimate fashion victim Lady Gaga.  Indeed, many of these avant-garde pieces are so well constructed one gets the feeling they should be placed in a museum as a testimony to the creativity and ingenuity of fashion designers of today. 

Ian Michael Turner