JUDY Wu channeled her trademark of feminine strength once again this season by reacting to recent world events and an uncertain future. An idea which has so far sifted among the zeitgeist of some of the best shows in New York and London this season, Judy’s take was not at all a defeatist one. Instead the designer, still proving her viability in London’s melting pot fashion scene, gave an attractive presentation at The Painting Rooms at the RSA where the aged brick wall backdrop added a mosaic-like frame to her AW17 collection, echoing the colour palette of amber, burnished gold and dark ruby with bars of sophisticated blue, yellow and emerald green hued sparks.
Entitled Prism, shape was its main focus. Continuing with the counter-reactive cuts and silhouettes she has previously experimented with to engaging effect, Wu expertly created some of her strongest structures with colour panelling which crucially flattered as well as galvanised ready-to-wear principles more than ever before. Elsewhere, folds and pleats were dwelt on to disrupt the continuity of lines and patterns.
These gave the code-like effect of a system of symbols that signalled or even spelled out Wu’s message of being wary about the powers that be and other threatening forces at work through sartorial signposting. Words are no match for ciphered colour combos and lines given varying motion to suggest different states of expression.
If one doesn’t particularly desire to subliminally extend political or cultural viewpoints to the world and simply don a charming garment, Judy still covered that. A skirt of radiant cotton-velvet and culottes with a simplified obi style belt and so on all gave extra options for making Judy’s personal style statements your own style statements.
by Livia Feltham
Images courtesy of Judy Wu