Canvas for Creativity

With London Fashion Week kicking off this Thursday, the city’s creative scene is already buzzing with energy. But this year, it’s not just about the usual high-fashion spectacle, London’s high street is stepping up in a big way to support emerging designers with Pull&Bear launching the ‘Canvas for Creativity’ initiative. In collaboration with the BFC NEWGEN programme, with names like Alexander McQueen and Simone Rocha once finding their footing through the programme, the initiative is aimed to redefine traditional fashion collaborations unlike those we have seen before within the highstreet landscape. 

Rather than simply partnering with designers for one-off collections, the initiative gives emerging talent access to Pull&Bear’s full suite of resources, allowing them to act as guest Creative Directors (without the constant switcheroo!). They get industry experience working within all the advantages and confines of production schedules and resourcing that a high street, global brand has, while maintaining their creative independence and making clothes that may get to a much wider audience than their own.

For its first iteration, BFC NEWGEN Chet Lo and Johanna Parv were selected, both designers known for their approach to fabrication and construction, allowing them to experiment at a larger scale. Chet Lo, known for his futuristic, spikey-texture designs, has taken this opportunity to push the boundaries of fabric innovation. His collection fuses heavy-duty nylon with delicate fabrics like silk and organza, playing with structure and oversized silhouettes. Johanna Parv’s approach is all about function meeting fashion. With a keen eye for urban utility, her collection blends technical fabrics with modular, adaptable designs, think windbreakers, hidden pockets and accessories that transform with the wearer’s needs. 

The collections will be sold not only online from today but also in a special pop-up at Selfridges from the 19th of February, further cementing the importance of retail giants in amplifying independent designers, something Selfridges champions, exemplified recently by their Sarabande’s House of Bandits concept space. By placing fashion-insider collections in a mainstream space, a dialogue between concept and everyday wear starts challenging those notions that high fashion is inaccessible. Or just intimidating. So we ask ourselves, is the high street turning from fast fashion to future fashion? Maybe we aren’t quite there yet, but at least the way the system supports talented, younger designer brands is still very much a positive work-in-progress!