Wow: banal with a twist—there s a collection summation that most designers would entirely lack the cojones to coin. But that was the essence of Jonny Johansson s languid précis of his references for the season. "It s about football [soccer], Harris Tweed, jogging—things men like," he said. "And being a bit banal about it."
Johansson s insurance is that this collection wasn t banal in the least, although it used the Anglo-masculine generic as a starting point. Shirt checks were blown up, a Barbour-style waxed jacket was oversize, soccer numbers were unaffiliated and turned into relief on patched knitwear. The soccer shirt—a poly-who-knows-what garment that is both foul and addictive—was used as the template (but twisted) for a mid-layer. There was lots of tinkering with old English staples: A covert coat was trimmed into a jacket, and a white fleece had panels of houndstooth. The models wore oversize Michael Caine specs, makeup, and a positive message: Scarves read "Gender equality," and a crewneck was patched with "Radical feminist."
Against this mixed mood board of manliness from the waist up was a heavy emphasis on leggings under layers beneath; the middle layer was shorts or detachable skirts pinned into jackets. Sometimes this silhouette (and that makeup) gave these looks a touch of the early Boy Georges—no bad thing.
