NIHARIKA BISHNOI

VISUAL DESIGNER RESEARCH JOURNAL

SDT ASSIGNMENT
Gareth Pugh has his design roots in costume, in his
teens began making costumes for the National Youth
Theatre which lead him to study at the Sunderland
College of Art. Pugh was first discovered after a piece
from his graduate collection from Central Saint Martins
was featured on the cover of Dazed and Confused.
During this time he interned for Rick Owens and his
talent was spotted by Owens’ wife Michelle Lamy who
too Ga- reth under her wing. The Rick Owens com-
pany have funded the rise in Gareth Pugh purchasing a
49% stake in his label and have introduced him to, and
funded the work of his Italian manufacturers Olmar and
Mirta.
Gareth Pugh’s eponymous label’s first show was in
London in 2005 and quickly created something of a cult
following, also providing the brand with enough press
exposure to gain sponsorship from the NEWGEN program
. Garments featured a dark colour-pallet and were heavily
influenced by costume featuring PVC and inflatable
pieces. Much of his history with costume and gothic
clothing is still visible in Pugh’s collections and
performance is still very influential in his shows, even
when other designers are straying away from theatrics.
His theatrical and performance inspired ap- proach led to
Pugh cultivating a relation- ship with Ruth Hogben of
SHOWSTUDIO fame, the two have collaborated to create
a number of fashion films together. When he was invited to
Pitti Uomo, Gareth pre- sented a special collection via
large-scale video installation, directed by Hogben. Gareth
Pugh’s first collections consisted solely of runway pieces
that were simply impossible to purchase, now however
piec- es are available in a number of boutiques and multi
brand stores internationally in- cluding Dover Street Market
and Selfridges.
His theatrical and performance inspired approach led to
Pugh cultivating a relation- ship with Ruth Hogben of
SHOWSTUDIO fame, the two have collaborated to create a
number of fashion films together. When he was invited to
PittiUomo, Gareth presented a special collection via large-
scale video installation, directed by Hogben. Gareth Pugh’s
first collections consisted solely of runway pieces that were
simply impossible to purchase, now however pieces are
available in a number of boutiques and multi brand stores
internationally including Dover Street Market and Selfridges.
For both events I wanted to consider the AW15 collection
and the way it was presented. I also wanted to take into
ac- count the personality of the brand however I wanted to
help reinvent it. Both buyers and press know what to
expect from Pugh therefore more luxurious and bright
invitations provide a new element of intrigue.
Autumn / Winter 2015 is the first time Ga- reth Pugh has shown
in London in 7 Years. Previously he has shown in Paris, New
York and Florence. It is a significant home- coming for Gareth
returning to London where his fashion career started and it is
fitting that such a return would occur on his eponymous label’s
10th Anniversary.
There is always a presence of
black in everything Gareth
Pugh does and very little
material relating to everything
that he does features very little
color. Of course there is no
sense in completely changing
what we provide guests with as
they will see an air of
insincerity, however through
simple reinvention of press
materials a new look to Gareth
Pugh can be created.
Pugh’s garments are attractive to large cult following of
young fans, mainly in Asia who religiously follow brands
like Gareth Pugh and Rick Owens. In 2013 the brand
collab- orated with the LA based jewellery brand Chrome
Hearts something that seemed somewhat natural due to
the aligned aesthet- ics of the brands and their shared fan
base, this was perhaps something in Michelle Lamy’s
mind when she introduced Pugh to the Stark family behind
the Chrome Hearts brand. The collaboration was
produced in alignment with his S/S14 show and consist-
ed of an assortment of 14 pieces including boots, gloves,
jackets and floor-legnth skirts. The collection was sold in
Chrome Hearts 22 worldwide outlets in very limited
numbers and sold out almost immediately. The collab-
oration was particularly successful because it showed two
brands who create high-qual- ity, luxury pieces that do not
always con- form to what is described as ‘luxury fashion’.
M E D I A C O V E R A G E Coverage in print, images
left to right: Time Out & Daphne Guinness, Coco Rocha
for US Vogue, Coco Rocha for US Vogue Dazed and
Confused Japan, Andrej Pejic for Dazed and Confused,
i-D magazine cover Carson McColl & Gareth Pugh for i-
D, Gareth Pugh for British Vogue, i-D magazine cover
Although nobody would even consider Ga- reth Pugh to be a
mainstream designer, he has worked with a number of pop-
artistes including Beyonce, Lady Gaga and Rihanna