September 20, 2020 |
Simone Rocha chose not to stage a full-on catwalk show, but she did have live models, arranged in socially distant formation at the Hauser Wirth art gallery. The audience – on strict time schedules designed to keep them separate – walked around the edge of the space but could still get close enough to see the workmanship and detail that Rocha puts into her beautifully crafted clothes.
Like many London designers showing during the pandemic, Rocha chose to double down on her design DNA. Her signature romance, loose shapes, pearl decorations and clunky footwear were all in evidence, so too was the sense of whimsical grandeur she lays claim to. Rocha, along with a cohort of London-based talents, has concluded that tracksuits are not the answer. The way to entice people to buy fashion again is with clothes that feel special, collectable and have a sense of permanence. Rocha wants to have a lifelong relationship with her customers – not a fleeting one-season stand.
Photography by Andrew Nuding.
