And the winner of Fashion Fringe 2011 is...Fyodor Golan
The platform for emerging talent really overstepped the mark with design duo, Fyodor Golan, as the 2011 winners of Fashion Fringe. Tipped as the 'new' creative giants set to take the fashion industry by storm, Golan Frydman and Fyodor Podgorny, are worlds apart by culture and traditions; Golan is Israeli with Moroccan and German roots and Fyodor is half Lativian and half Russian. Graduating from Istituto Marangoni in 2008, Golan moved to the UK, whilst Fyodor travelled back to London after graduating from the Royal Academy of Fine Art in Antwerps in 2007.
Images courtesy of Fashion Fringe
The duo met around four years ago, whilst accumulating a wide wealth of work experiences from the likes of Issey Miyake, Alexander Mcqueen, Raf Simons and Richard Nicoll, however the pair did not formally join forces until a year ago, when they launched their own label, Fyodor Golan in 2010, and showcased their debut A/W 11 collection,'Pagan Poetry', in February at London Fashion Week 2011. An exploration of the diverse cultures of tribal traditions and Greek and Roman culture of paganism, this collection struck a chord, and ultimately led to their submission as finalists for this years competition. And although, it was this collection that brought the fashion forward frontiers to our attention, it was undoubtedly their S/S 12 collection that would grant them the winning prize.
Images courtesy of London Fashion Week
The winning duo were inspired by Charles Baudelaires poetry, "Fleur du Mal", (a French poet, who explored the changing nature of beauty) and "the nature and presentation of beauty by Frida Kahlo and Vincent Van Gough and this story about a nymph-like woman who goes through a painful metamorphosis" and interestingly "becomes one with nature". 'Flowers of Evil', cultivates a collection that explores the power of nature and beauty as intricately intertwined as one.
Images courtesy of London Fashion Week
Corseted dresses to emphasise the womans' silhouette, the colour white represents her innocence and purity to signify her strength, but to distinct shades of canary yellow and pine green, the collection starts to create a vivid image of the gradual progression of nature. The dramatic styling of tangled locks, supported by the use of gold braces or interwoven locks and high collared necklines, to shadow expressions of pain and trauma; we can follow her ingenuos and unwordly journey to the dark and blusterous turmoil of nature in long black embellished pieces, without loosing sight of her beauty.
At a glance, it is breathtaking. This white beauty and sheer use of panelling embellished with flowers was strikingly beautiful and unforgetable.
Wearing a detailed black embellished beginnings of sparkling emerald greens and violet used as limbs, the evil force climbs its way, and nature starts to take over amongst the ruffled leather interiors - this is truly the work of two genuises. The use of the mature model can be considered as a defining moment as they delve into the aging notion of nature and beauty.
