Catwalk Breakdown: Gareth Pugh Revolutionizes the Runway by Rendering it Obsolete

The current climate has influenced and affected the fashion industry in many ways, McQueen may have opted for all-out extravagance on the catwalk, however Gareth Pugh has taken the cutting back to a new level by taking his designs from the floor to the screen.

The theatrical designer not only moved the progressively tedious front row celebrity clan away from their comfort zone, arms length from the models, but in many ways questioned the whole nature of the beloved yet alarmingly expensive tradition of the runway.

There was a distinctly medieval feeling about the ultra-modern projection of the show. Haunting sombre tones rang out as Model Natasa Vojnovic appeared on the screen as a winged silhouette in a lavish black cape. The figure then distorts and disembodies, the long pleated black skirt severing from the delicate t-shirt. A plethora of references were apparent as the scene cut from thigh high musketeer boots to bustles and hobble skirts. Further inspiration for the designs was illustrated by the movements of the model as she elegantly took on the stance of a Japanese warrior adorned in traditional attire of billowing black trousers.

Pugh retained his architectural signature style with Vojnovic sporting a futuristic perspex boxed hat and fringed helmet-like headdress. As she glided around the screen fluidly she looked ready for battle but with a soft feminine edge, a restless elegance.

As Valerie Steele from the Fashion Institute of Technology stated, the show 'was very successful as an image feast.'

The marquee sized black skirts dropped and gathered, sheer silks allowing each contour of the body to be emphasized and exposed; every movement embodying the energetic tranquility of the clothes.

'This is much more about a fashion shoot where the models create shapes with the clothes.' Jefferson Hack

As Vojnovic appears in an inflated metallic jacket, the show transcends further into a stylized shoot as the she unzips to reveal an exciting patterned body stocking, as if each cut of the film was exposing a new idea.

However, it was the format itself that was the most revealing, unleashing Pugh's true views on fashion and the catwalk. With the ability to use film, and the mastermind of filmmaker Ruth Hogben, Pugh regards this as more important than the orchestration of a physical show in which one can run the risk of a model falling over and worse. More topically, of course, the cost of a show is something at the forefront of designer's mind with each show costing thousands of pounds, and as Pugh says 'this is something that can endure longer than I'm around.' Yet, with the availability of every catwalk show online half an hour after the event, surely every show is on film? It seems then only logical the designer would want to capitalize on this and make their show a statement film piece rather than a catwalk regular, and even if it was only from floor to screen, Pugh's show certainly turned heads. It will be interesting to see how this idea manifests itself in the S/S '10 show.

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