Patrick McDowell SS23 London Fashion Week

Photography: Lorenzi Berni

Patrick McDowell revealed his new London Fashion Week collection “Marie Antoinette Goes to Liverpool” and debut collaboration with TENCEL™️ lyocell fibres and TENCEL™ LUXE filament yarns, under Lenzing's textile specialty brand, created to enhance sustainability in the luxury and high-end fashion sector.

This season, Patrick McDowell has set out to draw parallels between his Liverpudlian heritage and the world of French royalty taking inspiration from the opulence and overindulgence of Marie Antoinette, and the women of Liverpool that Patrick grew up watching peacock around his hometown. Combining the brand's signature 'PX' logo with the 'LET THEM EAT CAKE' slogan McDowell reinvents the imperial French flag through the vision of the collection's concept, infusing French couture with Liverpool staples, such as the tracksuit and the ball gown.

The collection draws upon pastel tones in an ode to Marie Antoinette's preference towards colors representing youth and femininity combined with strong accents of chartreuse and noir. McDowell experiments with varying proportions of basqued waists and bouffant skirts, blending classic silhouettes with contemporary Liverpudlian twists. Playing with volume and proportion whilst juxtaposing tracksuits and corsets to bring these classic design features into a modern age, McDowell presents his vision unencumbered by gendered constraints.

The prints from this collection have been created from family pictures of Patrick, his Mother and Grandmother in their childhood years, drawing on the element of personal storytelling that is integral to McDowell's design practice and reflecting on these childhood memories which Marie herself held so dear.

McDowell's design philosophy remains true to a sustainable practice, working solely with recycled and sustainable materials, fabric made from TENCEL™ lyocell fibres and TENCEL™ LUXE filament yarns has been provided by ELYAF and SÖKTAŞ.

Fabric printing has been undertaken by Esce-tex, using sustainable printing sources and techniques. Manteco® has provided MWool® fabrics and vintage silk has been provided by the Italian mill Taroni.

Alongside the main collection, The Restory have repurposed 25 pairs of luxury vintage shoes and football boots  including some pieces designed by Professor Jimmy Choo; Founder of his namesake academy,  the JCA | London Fashion Academy where Patrick is the designer in Residence.  This redesign and restore service will become available for The Restory clients following the show - allowing clients to customize and rework their well loved shoes.   The knitwear has been hand knitted by Wool and the Gang with sustainably sourced and chemical free yarn and will be available as a DIY kit after the show. Vintage British Military buttons have been used within the collection, accompanied by reclaimed Swarovski crystals, Eco interlinings were provided by Chargeurs and recycled plastic bottle wadding by thermore. In Partnership with Ecologi they have planted a tree for each show guest.

Each piece was designed and made in London with a low carbon footprint in mind, and will be available on a limited made-to-order basis following the show on McDowell's newly designed website. As ever, avoiding overproduction and creating long lasting, emotionally connected garments that fit the client perfectly is the core aim of the McDowell brand.

The show will take place at the historic building of 20 Hanover Square. Alongside Patrick's collection there will feature looks from the inaugural MA Entrepreneurship in Design & Brand Innovation students from the JCA, where Patrick has been Designer in Residence since 2021.

"Making collections that are deeply personal is a labour of love. I feel like a part  of me is inside each and everyone of these pieces. As ever, I have doubled down on what fashion  means to me, who I am and where I come from. I've created a dream world of sustainable  fantasy that captures the essence of peacock dressing for now. Growing up watching the scouse women around me get dressed up to go out and noticing how similar this felt to the writings about  the court at versailles lead me to imagine a fictional past where Marie escaped the guillotine and ran away to Liverpool." - Patrick McDowell, Founder and Creative Director of Patrick McDowell

FASHIONADO