The rise of Craig Green

"We always put ourselves under pressure," Craig Green confesses before his wide smile spreads across his Bethnal Green studio. As we're sat in a hushed corner, the light filled space is alive with activity, during the supposed festive break, in preparation for his third and final MAN performance. His name glows from the London Collections: Men schedule. In a whirlwind of promise, he has emerged as the crowned prince of the adventurous silhouette, transforming beautiful boys with wearable masterpieces and abstract theatre. The weight of expectation would weigh heavy on the shoulders of most design talents but Green, backed and spurred on by his closely knit team, shrugs the pressures of others off from his broad shoulders whilst floating ever higher powered by the pressure he places on himself.

"We try to change it up and push it each season, we don't want to stick to what we've done previously. We don't want to be just one thing. I think there's a fear in fashion to move away from what you're known for but it's good to feel uncomfortable and scared at times. As with most seasons, I'm scared about autumn/winter 14 but it's exciting," Green adds, eyes wide, full of focus and enthusiasm.

This fearlessness combined with his undeniable talent and hunger has propelled Craig Green forward and deservedly won him the hearts of the press and pockets of the world's finest buyers but it can be divisive. The pitchfork wielding tabloids were furious with an incensed Daily Mail dedicating a number of pages to their angst fuelled, confused rants whilst a perfume peddling waxwork mocked the designs live on Alan Carr. "I even received hate mail, directly to me, after the first MAN show. I was so depressed that I began to questions what I was doing. A week later people made me see that it's good to split opinion at times," he adds wisely. It is. Having bounced our way across the full spring/summer 14 spectrum, it could easily be described as a season of nice. Banality can be contagious but Green is one of the few designers offering something new, something exciting "For me, it's important for a show to be a show. It's really rare now that I look through catwalk photos and dream of being there. There are very few experiences like John Galliano's couture. any and every Comme show or the recent Rick Owens show. Gareth Pugh was the first ever show that I went to. I rushed from Central Saint Martins to make it and we were the last to get in, it was amazing, my heart was pounding. Shows should make you feel something special and that's what we strive for."

His tribe of faceless, psychedelic sculptures emphatically established Green as one of the capital's brightest stars but pushing continuously, excitement has closely circled Green from the moment his three dimensional, Russian folk robot inspired fantasies floated down the Central Saint Martins BA show catwalk. A collection that bubbled with creativity and craft, seeing him awarded a full MA scholarship. Weeks after presenting his award winning final MA collection, he confirmed his promise at the inaugural London Collections: Men. Offering another glimpse into his world of well crafted whimsy, the emerging talent, with his tonal crinkle washed calico, mohair and muslin cheesecloth creations, was the standout highlight at Fashion East's Installations.

"I'm drawn to making something out of nothing, or very little. You get the cheapest materials and use your skill to make it expensive." For Green, the real craft is in the textile transformation, in fabric alchemy, elevated do-it-yourself. "That first collection was made out of calico that we washed, tumble dried and put in a salt solution that softened it, before hand painting the edges. It was a cheap collection but that's an important idea not to lose sight off. Rather than buy silk and make something expensive, we're interested in using more attainable materials that can be improved, it's more of a challenge. The cost of producing in London already rises prices so we save where we can." Green thrives on challenges and constantly introduces them to his work, both out of need and his desire to push it that bit more.

"We do textiles in-house. All of the tie dye of spring/summer 14 was worked on here. 450 metres were dyed twice in metre by metre pieces. Twisted, poured, washed, left to dry for three days and then repeated. It was a nightmare process but this season, we're also working on a nightmare process - we love it really. Everything is hand painted, there's no digital or screen printing and they are heavily worked. We're back to handmade textiles and techniques but it's a different feeling.""

Creating and solving problems each fabric, silhouette and pattern at a time, Craig Green dances, delves and delights in duality. Opposites attract in his studio. His closely knit team of fantastical friends and crafty collaborators, don't just blur lines or introduce opposing forces but rather, majestically manifest creative collisions. Each garment is the playfight of light and dark, traditional and modern, familiar and fresh, reality and fantasy.

"The first collection played with seriousness, the spring/summer 14 was poppy and played with darkness and euphoria. We design by thinking about what we'd be excited to see in a show at that moment. This collection clashes utilitarian and ornateness. function and unfunctional, traditional and new. It's grounded in tradition because we were conscious of it not being seen as too faddy because there's a lot of that around. The challenge is always to do something that is not expected."

"Each season starts with the feeling that we'd like to portray, that always sounds a bit poncey but it's true. 'What do we want to see now after everything that's been?' That's always the driving force. We never stop talking, driving each other mad. I'm on the phone to Helen at midnight discussing every minute detail, discussion leads everywhere, from the studio to the pub, it's an ongoing process. This season has shifted and changed. Things get made, are scrapped and we start again. It's one of the most last minute collections but for the better. 

I never say my, it's always us and we. Perhaps I need the comfort of others but we do work so closely together. We're friends that like to make things. Different moments have brought us together, from old boyfriends to house parties to studying together. We all get on. They love doing what they do, they're not doing it for anything but the love, they are all crafty people and that's who I'm attracted to. It causes problems in it's own way because we push each other and can make things more difficult for ourselves but it's good. We just have a laugh," he adds before giving into a quiet giggle. Over the course of our hour long chat, Green didn't deviate from 'we' or 'us.' There might be one 'i' in Craig Green but the design talent is not one to downplay the role of and interplay between, the team of creatives that nestle under his umbrella.

Now, Craig Green could happily and skilfully turn his hand to any creative medium, so why, for now atleast, ground himself in London menswear? "It is one of the very few places that is open to suggestion and not scared of change.” Growing up in a quiet enclave of suburbia in North West London. surrounded by a loving family of craftsmen, Green's daydreams were filled with aspirations of being a sculptor or painter. "I initially went to Central Saint Martins because I wanted to be a portrait painter but whilst on the foundation course, I met friends who were studying fashion." Thankfully for us, the impressionable young talent followed suit and fell into fashion, textiles are now his canvas as he shapes a new modern menswear menswear between his hands. Beyond the fabulous fanfare of his MAN shows and as the applause fades, a Craig Green collection continues to captivate with delicious details long after the curtain falls. 'The beauty is in the details,' is an oft used phrase in menswear but when Green is concerned, beauty is omnipresent. With sweaters that artfully unravel, garments tie-dyed with a richness that forever teases the eye, a subtlety that envelops any considered viewer and a knowing of touch that excites the heart of all craft enthusiasts.

Craig Green spring/summer 14, my snapshots from the front row at MAN.

"Spring/Summer 14 was the first season that we've really sold.  Previously, we used to work on small scale production after the show, a rush of month from start to finish but this season, production has been in tandem with the design of the new collection. A bit of a strain but it's exciting to grow. We jumped from three to twelve stores this season. We're now in Dover Street Market New York and Tokyo, Other-Shop, 10 Corso Como in Milan and  IT in Hong Kong to name just a few."

Whisked into a whirlwind, the last eighteen months must have whizzed by Craig Green's eyes in one marvellous blur of surprise and success but as we wave goodbye to 2013 and with the industry at his feet, I ask what the plan is for 2014 and beyond.

"Every couple of months something good seems to happen. I started out just at the beginning of London Collections: Men and I've been lucky because I get to sell at the time of everyone else and there's a real platform and network of support through Fashion East and CFE. It's exciting to be a part of it. I'd love for it to grow to a point in which I can pay people properly, rely less on favours and to move out of my mum's house. That would all be lovely but I love it all. I get to work with my friends doing what I love and we have a great time. In that we're lucky," he adds with another grin. Enveloped by the craft and smiles of Craig Green, we are all lucky.

Burning the midnight oil

"Having both the main line in Opening Ceremony as well as the capsule collection is great," Lou Dalton beams proudly over the Internet. "Both are very different, each say something different without compromise," she excitedly exclaims. Joining forces with the rousing retailer, the design talent takes our hands again, leads us across the border once more and we fall for the charms of her imagined rig of Zetland Oil all over again. Through Opening Ceremony's youthful filter, her autumn/winter 13 collection's sartorial sharpness softens and becomes that bit more sportier. As with her own collection, the collection's personal narrative falls seductively from the lips of the designer but here it feels like a fresh tale.

Having first been approached by Opening Ceremony for a series of London based designer capsules around the 2012 Olympics celebrating the store's arrival in the capital, Dalton chose to explore cycling and intricately incorporated house signatures into the sport whilst making a point of it feeling a little more commercial and easy-to-wear. Unsurprisingly, the collection went down a storm and with this in mind she approached Opening Ceremony earlier this year to do something similar and this latest collection evolved from these speculative conversations.

"I enjoyed creating a fictional Oil Company called "Zetland Oil" for autumn/winter 13. 'Zetland' is an old Nordic term for Shetland. Shetland is such an inspiration to me. As you know I met the Haigh there (Justin Haigh, Lou's fella of 10 years) who just so happens to work for an oil company that has an oil port in Shetland. The other logos used within the designs are all inspired by oil company branding from in around the late 70s mid 80s but re-worked and all carrying reference to Lou Dalton, either the year I was born or Shetland itself.

When I first discussed the ideas for the range with Opening Ceremony and the t-shirt prints in particular, we all agreed on the idea of making them take on a sporty mood. I looked at making them appear quite Motor Cross branded. For me, it was integral to incorporate the store's branding into the capsule as much as my own. As the collection was to be a little easier-to-wear and even more accessible than the Lou Dalton main line, I kept it easy and quite relaxed. However, I did want to give it a strong reference to the Lou Dalton main line and did so by introducing one of the fabrics we had used on the autumn/winter 13 mainline which was a particular favourite of mine, this being a cloth that I refer to as Bobble. This cloth came in a whole ray of colours but for Opening Ceremony, we kept it to a tomato orange, bordeaux and black. Throughout, this collection felt very natural. I always believe that if it feels forced then you should just leave it and move on. Opening Ceremony are so great to work with, they understand and appreciate design and its end use without it becoming to banal."

The capsule collection includes caps, t-shirts, jogging bottoms and sweatshirts.

Opening Ceremony's ever evolving relationship with some of my favourite London design talent, mixing straight main line season buys and really considered capsule collections, the fruits of which manage to balance the aesthetics of everyone involved perfectly, shows the way for other stores to follow. Meanwhile, Lou Dalton is sketching a fine blueprint that other designers can look to for inspiration. Since launching her own line in 2005, Dalton has refined a well crafted reputation for rebellious English sportswear with a keen eye for and attention to detail whilst establishing herself as the real shining starlet of British Menswear. As London menswear has demanded an ever increasing presence at London Fashion Week and respect far beyond the perimeter of the capital, evolving from an afternoon in to three full days of shows, presentations, previews, installations and exhibitions under the umbrella of London Collections: Men, she has matured in the spotlight, built a brand and helped pave the way forward. Long may Lou Dalton continue to strive forward and here's hoping more follow.

Minimal metamorphosis

As our eyes prepared to focus on the spring/summer 14 catwalks of New York, Converse and Maison Martin Margiela treated us to teasers of their much publicised creative coming together. For their first confident stride forward, Converse Chuck Taylor All Star and Jack Purcell trainers were drenched in Maison Martin Margiela's iconic white paint. Covering all canvas, eyelets, laces and soles, the old favourites are altered simply yet radically. All white everything. A palette and sole cleanser. For me, the French writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry best defined minimalist design as being “not when there is nothing more to add, but when there’s nothing left to take away.” This is a makeover from a true minimalist iconoclast. However, what interests me most is that the white washing is just the start. As soon as the paint filled brush leaves the Converse classics, they naturally crack and shed their outer coat to reveal their original selves beneath. So simple and transformative, the hand painted act is the beginning of a unique dialogue between both brands. As they advance with age with each step forward and evolve in the everyday, they reveal their true selves in their own way. Wear and tear is rarely so intriguing and so obvious.

From well loved wallets to beautiful brogues, the gentle ageing of leather is a an ever absorbing process but it takes its time. The blank Converse canvas encourages change. Thankfully, after following fashion's conveyor belt through from London to Milan and Paris, two pairs of ice white Jack Purcells were waiting for me at the office. A few weeks of pacy peddling, puddle plummeting and pavement pounding has seen a rich burgundy hue peek out from beneath the cracks on one pair (black, blue and an exclusive yellow are also hidden behind the white wash) whilst the other is still perfectly wrapped in its thick blanket of white. Minimal metamorphosis. Using a recent paint tin spill in the car park as the ideal backdrop, I couldn't resist documenting their difference.

New new and old new. 
Converse and Maison Martin Margiela
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Nicomede Talavera SS14

"As this is my first full season I wanted to move on from the Masters, to push myself and demonstrate just what I can do,” Nicomede Talavera excitedly explains as we’re both enveloped by the sculptural shake-up of the senses that is his spring/summer 14 collection. Confidently striding out from the Central Saint Martins classroom, beyond the realms of Louise Wilson’s omnipotence and the far-reaching ripples of applause that his graduate collection received, we meet a young designer ready to step onto a larger stage. Having watched him develop over the last four years, documenting his progression from eager second year design student to a fully realised label, he feels both familiar and forcibly fresh.

“I'm proud of my MA collection but I do feel as though I could have injected more personality into it,” he confesses. Moving on from a measured masterpiece of monochrome modernity that teased with its textural treats and proportion play we now see the blossoming talent delighting in the juxtaposition of the everyday, tailoring, abstract graphics and minimalist colour blocking. Free to produce precisely what he wants, on his own terms, Talavera has a grin from ear to ear because this collection is him. He has grown into his talent.

"As soon as I finished my MA at Central Saint Martins, I was exhausted and felt that I needed a break but a few weeks later I realised that I had worked so hard to build something, really enjoy designing and wanted to see what could happen with the label," he confesses as we sip instant coffee in his Bermondsey base. As he turned the page on one enthralling chapter, spring/summer 14 marks the beginning of the next. There's an undeniable promise that blank pages will be filled with all manner of exciting narrative in the coming seasons and beyond. However, like everything step he's taken previously, Talavera approached the latest leap correctly. When it is all too easy to be swept away in an ocean of excitement, this young talent paused and took stock of everything before diving into the inviting waters of possibility. “One of the first things I did was write a business plan, it was so beneficial to place my label in the market place and work out just where I wanted it to be.” Having visualised the future of his eponymous label, Talavera is now carefully crafting it by taking elements from his accomplished BA and MA collections, pushing them further and taking them in entirely different directions.

“I developed my previous research of Ellsworth Kelly whilst extracting fresh elements and at the same time I became fascinated by the business men of Canary Wharf, seeing them on the tube in their pinstripe suits, trainers and a backpack. I wanted to take the tailoring and sportswear influences of the modern man and it all worked back to Kelly and his own fascination with everyday landscape. I too began to see these squares,” he explains. The result sees him transform a canvas of sheer nylon oversized t-shirts and sleeveless tops with appliquéd leather graphic elements alongside re-imagined superfine suiting fabrics. Thankfully the sartorial awkwardness of crisp tailoring mixed with gym kits is waved away by the expert hands of Talavera. Flimsy synthetic gym bags morph into luxurious objects of desire as the designer continues his fruitful collaboration with Eastpak and dull, tired, bedraggled commuter chic comes to life and reverberates with youthful energy. This is the designer applying his filter over everyday sights, just like Kelly did.

"I like to work from things that I see, whether they’re man-made or natural or a combination of the two… The things that I’m interested in have always been there. The idea of a shadow and a natural object has existed, like the shadow of the pyramids, or a rock and its shadow; I’m not interested in the texture of the rock, or that it is a rock, but in the mass of it, and its shadows," Ellsworth Kelly confided to Henry Geldzahler in 1964 in a piece for Art International 1. Surrounded by walls of Talavera product, the influence of the painter, sculptor and printmaker is plain to see. His rails mirror the artist’s masterly interplay of form, colour, and space. Moved by shapes he found in reality, Kelly’s perception is inspired by an object's external characteristics, taking interest in shadows and the texture of surfaces isolated from their contexts. Talavera’s eyes were similarly searching. "For me, inspiration will always come from what I see around me. It has to be grounded in reality. I'm drawn to subcultures, youth movements and ultimately street wear." Nicomede Talavera had explained in our last meeting. Having previously looked to the sartorial sights and cultural diversity of his childhood home of Hounslow he now looks to the commuting rat racers. A true mixologist of menswear, Talevera balances tailoring with sportswear and artistic form with function. Take a gulp.

Detail photography alongside Nicomede Talavera's Andy Malone shot spring/summer 14 look book

From coated nappa leather cracking delicately to textural pinstriped suiting reinterpreted as long sleeved tailored tops and unexpected silk cargo pockets, the collection is rich in tactile treasure. Each piece has a sculptural quality. Everything has been masterfully realised by the creator's hand. Even the zips, so often uniform and ubiquitous are anything but here. "I contacted Lampo, a luxury zip maker, because they sponsored my BA collection and they expressed an interest in working together on an exclusive zip which was amazing. I looked to the work of Robert Morris because I've always been drawn to his square work, it was layering and de-layering, simplifying yet bold,” he animatedly explains whilst thumbing a puller. They provide the perfect functional finish to the outerwear and collaborative Eastpak accessories. Each and every detail has been carefully considered.

Looking through the Andy Malone shot look book alongside my own detail shots once again and having inspected the quality of the garments first hand, it is remarkable that this is Nicomede Talavera's first full collection. There's no limit to how far this talent can go. As ever, his own Van clad feet are fixed firmly to the ground.  "I’m looking to grow the label naturally, not to force it in the market before we’re ready. For this season, we're hoping to secure two exclusive clothing stockists, one London based and one in Asia," he declares. I'm in no doubt that he'll do that and more.