Kate Sylvester

Diamond Dogs- From the Name of this collection I was expecting a 70’s Glam Rock Look inspired by Bowie, Oh How I was mistaken. Inspiration was actually drawn from Judith Baragwanath a woman who featured on the Auckland scene in the 80’s known for her black lips. She was a woman with an upper class background but was involved in the punk and art scene.

This inspiration could easily be applied to the indie-scenesters of today but unlike today with Facebook, Party photos and the slash generation dressing up in a sub culture was once an act of rebellion not a phase in experimentation also before a time of subcultures being marketed and catered to.

I hold reservation to a designer who draws inspiration from a non celebrity, obscure or well known figure such as Judith Baragwanath, whose face was used as large patches and applied to Jackets and t-shirts. There is a varying level of exploitation - marketing and then mass producing a person’s lifelong style or essence then disregarding it for the  next seasons.

Kate Sylvester’s look remained, the well made coats- wool or tweed, the ruffle story, stripe story which was styled in punk fashion with coats on one shoulder, leather belts worn like sashes but resembling more of an artillery belt. Women dressed in a mix of military man style attire, with the hint of austere femininity such as lace, tiaras or jeweled necklaces, while the men cross dressed in lace slips or wore men’s clothing with just a hint of cross dressing such as lace knickers visible, riding above the waistline which I was not sure if it still held the same shock factor or relevance in today’s time - and instead looked humorously contrived .

The use of tie dye, luxe fabric in coats and checks incorporated throughout the show was something I thought had fallen out of designers favour but this clever conscious decision to use the un-desirable is perfect for the punk aesthetic.

Although this collection was more troublesome for me to digest from Kate Sylvester I enjoyed the clever lipstick print which looked like an artillery belt, the collection showed the clear mix of austerity and punk something that will definitely resonate with the kids on the scene of today.