More Than Stars

London Fashion Week: Molly Goddard Spring/Summer 18

In these unsteady times, Londoner Molly Goddard reminds us to keep on keeping on.

by Jasmine Wallis

The term “Keep Calm and Carry On” was a motivational poster produced by the British Government in 1939 as the world descended into the catastrophic war that would last for the next six years. In contemporary times, it’s been used as a response to the terrorist attacks that appear to be becoming more frequent. The phrase encourages the stiff upper lip ideology that Britain is known for, and reminds citizens to continue to live their lives in as much normality as possible. On Friday the 15th of September a bomb was detonated in the London Underground causing chaos and panic. At the same time, journalists, designers, models and more were arriving into the country’s capital for the annual London Fashion Week.

Despite being a trillion dollar industry, the fashion world is sometimes perceived to be frivolous and unnecessary. Why should anyone care about the latest couture when the country is being attacked every few months? The day after the bomb was thrown down a carriage in Parson’s Green, a youthful fashion collection by Central Saint Martins alumni, Molly Goddard descended down the runway to remind us to “Keep Calm and Carry On”.

Goddard rose to industry fame after her London Fashion Week debut in 2014. Her work was picked up by the prestigious Dover Street Market, she won the British Emerging Talent award in 2016, and was a finalist for the LVMH Prize in 2017 (a prize to support young fashion designers around the globe). Goddard’s designs are a jewel in the modern London style scene are recognisable for their tulle tapestry, and feminine frills as she specialises in handcraft techniques such as hand pleating and crocheting. Goddard’s Spring/Summer 2018 collection – whilst the pastel and tulle was ever-present – suggests the 28-year-old designer has injected some more maturity into her work, the kind of maturity that comes after establishing yourself in the industry for a few years.

Unintentionally, Goddard’s pieces over the years have come to represent modern politics and the contemporary woman. Take for example, the superstar, Rihanna, who on the 22nd of January 2017 at the Women’s March joined the crowd of people in New York, protesting Trump in the name of gender equality. Featuring a bright pink “This Pussy Grabs Back” sweater, as well as stiletto heels and a baseball cap, Rihanna donned a tulle Goddard minidress. Another political moment for the young designer was when the mayor of London Sadiq Khan sat front row, the day after the bomb was placed in the London tube and after months of terrorist attacks on the country. “It’s really important that we show business as usual rather than allow terrorists to disrupt our way of life and stop us doing what we’re doing. It’s really important that we demonstrate our confidence and that we show the world London is open,” he said to The New York Times.

“My doctor told me to watch my drinking. Now I drink in front of a mirror,” read Goddard’s show notes. To compliment this, model Edie Campbell opened the show in a virginal white cotton dress paired with biker boots, a glass of champagne held in one hand, and an e-cigarette dangling in the other. The shoes alternated throughout the show with some models twirling down the runway barefoot, the others in leather flats. There were no heels in sight; the Goddard Girl has no time for flimsy heels when she could be dancing on tables.

Cotton dresses in orange and black featured flower prints reminiscent of the 1990s grunge era, purple sequins adorned a playful mini-dress, its flowing sleeves covering arms, framing the wearer’s legs. The season was a mixture of long and short pieces; some cut to the thigh, some to the ankle, alluding to Goddard’s feminist philosophy that the modern woman can choose how much skin she wants shown. A sense of balance was achieved with sharp blazers paired with billowing cotton skirts, alluding to the other half of Molly’s show notes: “She has time to pause, to look and take in what’s around her. She is on her way to a gallery opening and then for a steak.”

For the grand finale of the Londoner’s show, models danced along the catwalk and linked arms, giggling and cradling champagne. In these unsteady political times Goddard has created a “Goddard Girl”, not as a form of escapism, but to show the world that the party isn’t over for the cultural capital city – that the world needs more tulle dresses and of course, to keep calm and carry on.

Bradley Dixon • October 23, 2017


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