Intellectual style can often seem a misnomer in the celebrity driven style culture that currently rules the fashion world. With designers worrying about generating heat around their own public image or chasing the insecure/universally adored to dress them on the red carpet, there's not too much space left for any real thinking beyond whether something will make column inches.
As ever, there are exceptions that prove the rule and Hussein Chalayan is one such exception. Consistently provocative and stimulating, Chalayan produces clothes that are shocking in the best sense of the word. While I often struggle with the idea that fashion is a form of art, and with the endless retrospectives in prestigious cultural institutions of designer clothes that have been in department stores sometimes barely seasons before, it's clear that Chalayan is a worthy recipient of what should be a rarer accolade with his show at the Design Museum.
On until 17th May, the exhibition covers 15 years of ground breaking work. 'Clothes' doesn't really do justice to what is on display here, with highlights including outfits that convert from and into furniture, dresses that incorporate lasers or aircraft construction technology and a dress consisting of Swarovski crystals and more than 15,000 LED lights. While some people wonder what the point is of the kind of design that can't be bought on ASOS, Hussein Chalayan at the Design Museum shows how you need designers like him for the fashion world to avoid falling even further into endless revivalism and focus-group generated design. Designers like Chalayan digest the world around us to create new forms and modes of thought while making things to wear, which is pretty clever stuff when you think about it.
Oh, and while you're at the Design Museum, check out the Brit Insurance Design Awards Shortlist Exhibition, which opens 12th February.
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