Eccentric ordinary: JW Anderson Autumn-Winter 2024

On a Sunday morning, Jonathan W. Anderson showed in London another masterfully crafted collection, his take on the power of nostalgia and eccentric ordinary.

“This that. To have one thing, one has to acknowledge the other. Instead of nostalgia, colloquialism. In lieu of sensational, the non apparent. Rather than notoriety, being secretive. Tropes and types: the ones that usually get unnoticed. This, that”. JW Anderson’ show notes this season were a philosophical manifesto. So was his autumn-winter collection that he presented to the London crowd on Sunday morning at the Seymour Leisure Center, his beloved swimming and climbing facility.

Backstage, the Irish designer explained that he wanted to take things psychologically this season: “It’s both grotesque and pragmatic, it’s about eccentric ordinary”. Coats with very big shoulders, gray curly wigs instead of hair, trenches turned into tops. “I was looking at fashion as your life. Like your next door neighbour, the noisy and nosy one. Furniture as clothes. Doing the same things that everyone knows, your parents know, and they become kind of new again”, he continued. You know, how old things inspire the young, and all of a sudden they look cool again. What is more, it’s true for everything today: from clothes and shoes to music hits of the past, that all of a sudden become omnipresent in the world of today (poke to Sophie Ellis-Bextor and her iconic “It’s A Murder on the Dance Floor”).

The designer was particularly inspired by “Last of the Summer Wine”, a British TV comedy from the 70s surrounding the antics and misadventures of three retirees who reside in a Yorkshire village. Their ordinary life is filled with a bunch of exciting events, happening at their neighbours' places: after all, they passed their time speculating about their fellow townsmen.

Anderson’s models were walking in housewife shearling flats, the most comfortable shoes you could find in a basic Marks&Spencer in any British town. Braided minidresses were made out of yarn knots: favourite pastime of the suburban housewives is a trend on TikTok. The loungewear and mandane cosy cashmere sweaters, tied with knots, seemed unmistakably cool, and refreshing. It’s exactly this type of basics that inspire the young, according to JW Anderson. Reminiscent of curtains, the column dresses were also draped in knots creating a beautiful sartorial moment. A true show-stopper, JW Anderson’s extraordinary skirts with flowers and fringes, were styled with basic V-neck jumpers. It was a collection filled with beautiful extraordinary basics in a natural colour palette that would become, undoubtedly, your go-to next season.

Text: LIDIA AGEEVA