Now in its 27th year, Graduate Fashion Week continues to highlight the latest emerging talent, showcasing the fashion innovators of tomorrow with a four-day event in London on the 3rd – 6th June 2018. Helping bridge the gap between graduation and employment, the event offers students a unique chance to meet industry contacts, recruiters and brands face to face, giving them the opportunity to kick-start their careers within some of the world’s most globally successful brands.
To kick off this year’s campaign, esteemed stylist and photographer Damian Foxe sought out his favourite graduate designs from hundreds of final year entries to be shot at the home of Graduate Fashion Week, The Old Truman Brewery in Shoreditch. Inspired by old school fashion and portrait photography, Damian played with the power of natural light which, when properly harnessed, sculpts the human form and magnifies its natural beauty. Using traditional, manual techniques such as offcuts of fabric and found fragments of paper and glass, he was able to manipulate the light to blur the lines between solid physical reality and pure fantastical imagination, adding drama and atmosphere to the final imagery.
The graduates chosen to debut their work in the photoshoot embody diverse influences and unique styles, with some focusing heavily on sustainability, using ethical materials and recycled pieces. Photographed designs include aspiring designers from British GFW member universities University of Central Lancashire, University of the Creative Arts Epsom, University of East London, De Montfort University and Manchester School of Art. The Universidad de Vigo, Spain, was the first international school to have a student selected for the shoot and included in the campaign.
Martyn Roberts Managing & Creative Director of Graduate Fashion Week said: “The work being produced for 2018 is of the highest calibre and the campaign is truly original and extraordinary, reflecting the talent on show at Graduate Fashion Week. We look forward to seeing the collections used in the campaign on the runway in June.”
