First view of creations to be featured in the annual GSA catwalk show

Two
of the striking designs that will be shown in the GSA catwalk show next month
were revealed on 21 February 2013. Part of the “Androgyny” collection, which
features the contemporary application of Harris Tweed, the outfits were created
by 20-year old British designer, Matthew
Allen and 22-year old Chinese designer, Tommy Jiaqi Zhong.

Courtesy
of construction company Sir Robert McAlpine the creations were unveiled in the
setting of the new building, currently being erected on Renfrew Street, where
GSA Fashion and Textile students will be based in future. Designed by the
world-renowned, New York based architect, Steven
Holl, in partnership with JM Architects of Glasgow, the building is one of
the most important pieces of architecture commissioned in the UK in recent
years, and is the first phase of the GSA’s Garnethill campus development.

“Harris Tweed’s support for our 2013
collections allowed me a unique opportunity to play with the idea of fusing the
heritage of the textile into this urban sportswear aesthetic,”
says Allen. “I wanted to explore
technically the details of trainers, the way textiles are intermixed, the use
of sportswear fabrics and top stitch detailing against classical tailoring and
a clean silhouette.”

The
inspiration for Zhong’s designs came from church architecture. “I reassembled photographs of church
interiors to explore garment shapes and colour placement,“ says Zhong, who
studied at the Central Academy of Fine Art in Beijing before coming to the GSA.
“I combined these drawings with elements
from monk’s and nun’s robes to create contemporary outfits, which are loose
fitting and structured.”