Tonight, for once, the gods shined on the Fashion Awards. Instead of the pelting December rain that typically greets guests at London’s Royal Albert Hall, the crowd was blessed with clear skies—if still frigid temperatures. To your left, you could see Alek Wek turning heads in a plunging red gown (let’s hope she had something warm to bundle up in afterwards); to your right, there was Alexa Chung in a spangly Miu Miu dress topped with a faux fur coat.
Stepping inside the velvet-carpeted venue, Caroline Polachek delivered one of the night’s standout looks in a sheer-paneled McQueen by Séan McGirr gown with Sleeping Beauty embroidered thistles crawling up the bodice. Alex Consani could be spotted chatting with a stylist friend in her deconstructed Union Jack fantasia of a Dilara Findikoglu dress, and Gucci’s Sabato De Sarno walked arm-in-arm to his table with the Chinese model Yanan Wan, both in “ancora red,” naturally.
As everyone elbowed their way to their tables and boxes, it was time for the show to start. The evening’s hosts, TV presenter Maya Jama and musician Kojey Radical, kicked things off with a rousing “Hello, London!” The fashion crowd greeted their call to action with a somewhat muted response: it has, after all, been an almost unrelentingly bleak year for many of those working within the British fashion industry, thanks to rampant inflation, supply chain disruption, labor shortages, Brexit-related import costs, the bursting of the e-commerce bubble… the list goes on. Turning their attention to the nosebleed seats, Jama and Radical shouted, “This isn’t a shouting crowd, clearly! Except for the fashion students up there.” (That was met by a deafening chorus of cheers.) “You’re the life and soul of this party,” Jama exclaimed, before Radical added: “That’s an absolute fact.”
The awards kicked off in earnest with Law Roach, who delivered a video speech that summarized the year in fashion, from Alessandro Michele’s debut at Valentino, to John Galliano’s seismic Margiela couture collection, to Dries Van Noten’s final turn on the runway. Soon afterwards, the Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creation was given to Tyler Mitchell, the photographer and Vogue contributor whose groundbreaking work—and remarkable ability to showcase high fashion in a way that feels laid-back and true to life—has made him an image-maker to be reckoned with.
Mitchell used his speech to note how important London has been to his trajectory as an artist, describing it as the first place he found his feet creatively, after connecting with like-minded photographers such as Campbell Addy and Nadine Ijewere. Then came a performance from none other than Debbie Harry, belting out “Heart of Glass” and a cover of Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love.”
Prizes were handed out to the Chopova Lowena duo for their wildly eclectic mash-ups of sportswear and Eastern European craftsmanship, and to Priya Ahluwalia for her similarly culture-clashing vision of contemporary menswear. Then Marco Capaldo of 16Arlington’s award as a New Establishment Womenswear winner produced the first dewy-eyed moment of the evening. “My dad always used to say to me when I was growing up: Never look down on anyone, unless you’re kneeling down to help them,” Capaldo said. “I’ve been helped by so many people who have kneeled down to help me, and I owe this award to them.” He capped things off by paying tribute to his late partner, Kikka Cavenati, who died in 2021 a few years after they founded the brand. “Without Kikka, 16Arlington wouldn’t exist,” he added. “She should be up here accepting this award, but life had different plans. This one’s for you Kiks.”
Next came Dame Margaret Barbour, who was there to receive a special recognition award, presented by Alexa Chung—and her speech served as another poignant moment. Recounting how she ended up becoming the keeper of the Barbour keys—after marrying the scion of the waxed jacket dynasty in 1964, he died at the age of 30 just four years after their wedding—she paid tribute to the brand’s ability to cut across the rigid distinctions of the British class system and the relentless innovation that has seen it remain a fashion favorite. A powerful speech by Nan Goldin, accepting an award for Gucci, soon followed: “This is a beautiful place, and you’re all beautiful people wearing beautiful clothes, but you shouldn’t forget: Free Palestine.” It prompted the most passionate applause of the night.
Then, Jama returned to the stage to pose the big questions: “Whose work had the most impact this year? Whose craft is the most exquisite? Who’s putting British fashion on the world stage?” It was time to move on to the top prizes, beginning with British womenswear designer of the year, which went to Simone Rocha. (She’s actually an Irish designer, but she really deserved the award, so we’ll let that one slide.) “I’ve had a year where I’m very proud of the work I’ve produced,” Rocha said, bundled up in a satin shrug coat of her own design. “Thank you to Jean Paul Gaultier for inviting me to your house and atelier, thank you to my team who work so hard every day to bring my vision to life. My collections are fueled by emotion—and I’d like to extend that emotion to all the women and children displaced due to conflict in the world right now. To echo Nan Goldin: Free Palestine.” (Later Jonathan Anderson picked up the designer of the year award and said, “It’s always good to see Irish people are back in vogue!” Well, quite.)
That the night should have a political slant only feels natural: what is the spirit of London fashion if not to celebrate the outcasts, the innovators, and those constantly pushing the boundaries of taste and creativity? It was a sentiment echoed by Alex Consani, who was awarded model of the year, and also used her speech to highlight the worrying gap between her success as a model against those within the trans community who don’t fit the mold of being white, sample size, and passing. “I am the first trans woman to win this award,” she said. “But I can’t accept it without thanking those who came before me. Specifically, the Black trans women who have fought for the space I’m in today: Connie Fleming, Dominique Jackson, Aaron Rose Philip, and countless others who fought for the space that allowed me to flourish.” Consani being Consani, she finished with a quip: “Thank you to all the designers who have dressed me. And thank you for the stunning shoes—that are always two sizes too small.” Delivered like a true professional.
The next honoree was Tom Ford, who was introduced by Anna Wintour in the night’s most unexpectedly moving speech. Vogue’s editor-in-chief began by recognizing Ford’s role in helping an entire generation of designers realize their visions—as she noted, Christopher Bailey, Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen, and Nicolas Ghesquière all came up through his ateliers. To inform her comments, Wintour spoke to Ford’s closest friends and collaborators—which resulted in some delightful anecdotes. “Julianne Moore recalled to me wearing a new pair of corduroy trousers she loved to dinner at Tom’s house. ‘What do you think of my trousers?’ She asked. ‘I see you’re wearing them,’ was Tom’s amenable reply. His brilliant business partner, Domenico De Sole, meanwhile, remembered a favorite Tom phrase: ‘Never run after a man or a bus, as within five minutes another one will always turn up.’” But most of all, Wintour’s tribute to Ford was rooted in honoring his kindness and lack of judgment when it comes to meeting—and celebrating—people on their own terms.
Plus, of course, the side of Ford so few people get to see: his role as a doting dad. “The far bigger part of his career is what Tom has done to bring up Jack, even faced with the aloneness of losing Richard [Buckley, Ford’s late husband] and the great unknown of single fatherhood. Tom is an extraordinary designer and a great filmmaker—but he has emerged as a remarkable father. As Stella [McCartney] put it to me: ‘A lot of people don’t know that being a dad is his greatest, biggest achievement.’”
There were other awards to be handed out, to be sure: Grace Wales Bonner as British menswear designer of the year, and Issa Rae as the Pandora leader of change. Still, there was one award everyone was waiting to see, after an enormous fluffy blue hat was spotted at one of the tables near the stage. (Reader: it was Rihanna, and the look was immediately traced back to Christian Lacroix’s fall 2002 couture collection. She wore it with layers of diamond necklaces, of course. It’s Lacroix, sweetie!)
Rihanna was in attendance with her partner A$AP Rocky—who was recognized as a cultural innovator and introduced by Michèle Lamy in Rick Owens goth drag, describing Rocky in her speech as incomparable. Like many other creatives being honored tonight, there was one thing—and one thing only—that Rocky wanted to spotlight: the restless and endlessly innovative energy of London’s fashion community. “Being named a cultural innovator means so much to me, especially as a rapper with endeavors in the fashion industry. I think that the lines have definitely merged now, and I want to thank the British Fashion Council for recognizing that. To all the young designers who were nominated today who may or may not have won tonight, I just hope that this is a token of encouragement to show you you could do this shit too.”
After an unprecedentedly difficult few years for the British fashion industry, it was cheering to see so many of tonight’s award winners reiterate how important London is as an incubator for the next generation of global fashion talent. Every single one of the designers honored tonight found their big break in London—but with the bleak financial outlook for emerging British brands now, can the next generation expect that same leg up? Figuring that out will be an important mission for the Fashion Awards of the near future.
