Chopova Lowena, the Deptford-based brand founded by former Central Saint Martins students Emma Chopova and Laura Lowena, often features hand drawings in its collections. It started with Chopova, whose mother, a painter, always encouraged her to draw. They decided to use her playful illustrations of cartoon figures and flowers in their clothing, and they have since become part of the brand’s signature aesthetic. “For SS22, we took inspiration from surf graphics and Bulgarian postcards,” explains Lowena. This translates into long-sleeved T-shirts adorned with vibrant fish illustrations and wide-leg trousers filled with pools of black and green paint. AW22, meanwhile, will be based on the medieval era and ice hockey, says Chopova. “Each season we choose two inspirations – one is sportswear and the other is traditional wear.”
Chopova Lowena cotton trousers, similar available for £775 © Andrea Urbez
Olympia Le-Tan cotton canvas bag in Greece, £1,168, matchesfashion.com
Christopher Kane linen blend shirt dress, £995
Illustrations are popping up in fashion collections everywhere: Bode’s current range features miniature sketches of London life and line drawings of daisies and clowns; Zimmermann’s white maxi skirt is scrawled in pink handwriting; Isabel Marant designed a bikini top with abstract drawings and dresses printed with messy floral drawings; while Polly Hardman of Amsterdam-based Westweaves draws comic book-style illustrations directly onto vintage leather bags and shoes. Painting was also referenced in Louis Vuitton’s AW22 show, with vibrant floral ties at Jonathan Simkhai, where knit dresses were striped with tangerine and purple brushstrokes, and at Dries Van Noten, where vibrant splashes of water-based paint ran through jackets and dresses.
Rosalía wears a custom mesh dress by Noon Cottage Industry © @rosalía.vt
In 2018, the designer behind London-based brand Noon Cottage Industry (who prefers not to use her real name) was fresh out of art school and couldn’t afford clothes, so she decided to make them sleds; she took a tulle net, cut out the top pattern, mixed basic liquid pigments in a fabric pen and began to draw. The resulting tops and dresses—which combined abstract and figurative brushstrokes with bright sherbet colors and Y2K-reminiscent clingy silhouettes—became an instant hit on Instagram.
Swatch Shenron Ultimate Edition watch, £121
Valentino Duchess silk-satin mini dress, £2,310
Noon Cottage Industry mesh dress, POA
Alja Horvat Drops Of Jupiter poly-mix top, £47
Kim Kardashian’s stylist commissioned eight pieces from Noon Cottage Industry, including an electric-blue double-faced painted corset; Kylie Jenner quickly wore a high-neck minidress with a woman sketched in coral; a long-sleeved maxi dress painted with red swirls, requested by singer Rosalía; and, for Welsh musician Kelly Lee Owens, a dress with “her initials on the neck and some images from Welsh mythology”.
From left: Westweaves Vintage Leather Boots in Time Travel, £200 and Power of Positivity Boots, £190
Westweaves Get Real leather bag, £130
Noon Cottage Industry Custom Mesh Top, POA
Row organic cotton blouse, £330, matchesfashion.com
Jacquie Aiche diamond and gold vintage Rolex Oyster, £13,245, matchesfashion.com
“Those kinds of things make it special enough for people to buy,” says the designer. “They can say, ‘This is for this occasion, and I want these kinds of motifs to be drawn in the images.'” She paints each item individually rather than mass producing, which keeps the process more consistent. “I think that’s what allows me to keep doing it and for him [my pieces] everyone be different. I make custom pieces because I don’t want to mass produce them.”
Libby Page, senior market editor at Net-a-Porter, sees the emergence of illustrated and painted pieces as part of the growing appetite for craft-led fashion that connects the wearer with the designer. She advises that patterned and illustrated pieces are “most impactful when styled back, paired with elegant jewelry and simple accessories.” “We’ve seen a huge response to statement pieces with strong brand DNA,” she says, but “without the logo.” She says of Isabel Marant’s Solenne one-shoulder mini dress, Valentino’s floral-print mini dress in silk duchesse satin, and Dries Van Noten’s midi dress in silk satin print, “all feel elevated and fun.”
Model, Seng Khan in Squad. Casting, Tiago Martins at Ben Grimes Casting. Hair and make-up, Liz Daxauer in Caren using Living Proof and Shiseido. Assistant Designer, Meg Edmond
