London fashion week: Grace Wales Bonner riffs on 70s London reggae

Designer who dressed Duchess of Sussex drew on classic designs and colours of Rastafarian flag

Lovers Rock, the reggae genre popular in London in the 70s and 80s, had an unexpected moment in the fashion spotlight on Sunday night at the capital’s menswear shows. Grace Wales Bonner, a much-hyped designer who has dressed Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, dedicated her London fashion week collection to the music, and the scene that surrounded it more than 40 years ago.

Lindley Hall, a grand building in equally grand SW1, was transformed into a homage to a youth centre. Guests including the artist Isaac Julien, the footballer Héctor Bellerín and poet Wilson Oryema sat at round tables, and fruit punch and Jamaican patties were offered as refreshments. In the show notes provided, Wales Bonner explained that she was inspired, in part, by John Goto’s photographs of second-generation British Caribbean and Asian young people at Lewisham youth centre for lovers rock parties. The soundtrack – put together by Jamie xx – was blasted out of speaker stacks, as it might have when these images were taken.

The collection stuck close to the theme. It began with a crisp wool suit with a polo neck – a classically 70s combination, but with a minimalism that did away with any accusations of retro. Across women’s and menswear, trenchcoats, knits, tracksuit trousers and donkey jackets followed, along with shirts printed with paintings by the British-Guyanese artist Frank Bowling.

The red, gold and green of the Rastafarian flag were used on hats, vests and coats. All the clothes felt modern despite the references. This is one of Wales Bonner’s strengths. While her references are so academic that she provides a bibliography for each collection, she is able to translate her area of historical interest – be it lovers rock, Howard University in the 60s, or the court dress of Haile Selassie – into clothes that people want to wear.

After the show, Wales Bonner – a somewhat serene presence in the usually frenetic world of a fashion show – explained that the inspiration for this show had been, as she put it, “inevitable” because of its proximity to her own background, and her Jamaican father’s experiences in London in the 70s. “I was thinking a lot about people coming into community centres and creating their own parties,” she said. “I was looking at John Goto’s Lovers Rock series and saw my family reflected in it.”

The 29-year-old designer saw a difference between that era and her own. “I feel like there was an optimism and irreverence [then] which meant that you could sample and mix cultural references in a nonchalant way,” she said. Wales Bonner’s sterling work could perhaps encourage a new generation to do the same.

Last year was a big one for Wales Bonner, starting with the curation of an exhibition at London’s Serpentine Gallery in January. She also won the BFC/Vogue Fashion Fund prize – an investment of £200,000 – in May. The designer’s pedigree is writ large in the company she keeps. The white coat-dress worn by the Duchess of Sussex to present her son in May was Wales Bonner’s, and she collaborated with Christian Dior’s Maria Grazia Chuiri on items for the megabrand’s cruise collection in April. She also partnered with Solange on a performance art happening, Devotional Sound, in New York.

Wales Bonner highlights the work of other people of colour excelling in their field. Recent posts on her Instagram include a clip of poet Linton Kwesi Johnson reciting his piece Inglan Is a Bitch in 1980, Bowling paintings, and a notice of a talk between Wales Bonner and artist Theaster Gates, for his show at the Tate Liverpool. Scroll further down and you’ll find musicians including Steve Lacy and Jorja Smith wearing her designs. It’s perhaps part of a wider vision for the designer’s label.

“It is my ambition to build a brand that comes from a black cultural perspective and has the same authority, presence and impact as any esteemed European house,” she said to Vogue in May. “In the long term, I want Wales Bonner to exist on that same level.”

• This article was amended on 6 January 2020 to correct a misspelling of Linton Kwesi Johnson’s name and that of the venue, Lindley Hall in Westminster.

Contributor

Lauren Cochrane

The GuardianTramp

Related Content

Article image
Grace Wales Bonner pays homage to black icons in Paris show
Frontrunner for Louis Vuitton job enlists Kendrick Lamar, Lubaina Himid and Jamaica football team for new collection

Morwenna Ferrier Paris

18, Jan, 2023 @10:45 AM

Article image
Extinction Rebellion activists target London fashion week
Protesters to hold fashion funeral in demand for industry to take climate crisis seriously

Jess Cartner-Morley

13, Sep, 2019 @4:24 PM

Article image
Ahluwalia's cultural patchwork lights up London fashion week
Designer leads fashion’s new diverse charge with looks inspired by multicultural Britain

Priya Elan

05, Jan, 2020 @7:51 PM

Article image
Burberry showcases modern equestrian chic at London fashion week
Fashion house weathers the economic storm as coronavirus outbreak dents luxury demand

Jess Cartner-Morley

17, Feb, 2020 @7:14 PM

Article image
London fashion week opens as coronavirus hits attendance
Event kicks off without many press and buyers from important Chinese market

Hannah Marriott

14, Feb, 2020 @12:14 PM

Article image
London fashion week men's makes a grab for the zeitgeist
Charles Jeffrey Loverboy, A-Cold-Wall* and David Beckham star, as interest in menswear booms

Scarlett Conlon

04, Jan, 2019 @2:53 PM

Article image
London fashion week: five shows to watch out for
As the fashion world descends on the UK capital, Burberry and JW Anderson are among the eye-catching shows

Scarlett Conlon

16, Feb, 2018 @9:00 AM

Article image
Climate protesters disrupt London fashion week by blocking roads
Extinction Rebellion calls for British Fashion Council to declare climate emergency

Mattha Busby

17, Feb, 2019 @11:28 AM

Article image
Victoria Beckham's naughty side returns at London fashion week
Designer brings leopard print, plunging necklines and heels to her second show in the capital

Jess Cartner-Morley

17, Feb, 2019 @1:35 PM

Article image
London fashion week pays tribute to Queen as Monday’s parties banned
While big brands cancel shows, the disruption has a massive knock-on effect on smaller designers

Chloe Mac Donnell

16, Sep, 2022 @2:45 PM