Symonds Pearmain (Q9275)
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Symonds Pearmain is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Symonds Pearmain |
Symonds Pearmain is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
“We have no assumptions of who this woman is,” said Anthony Symonds. “She’s entirely herself.” The designer, who cofounded the Symonds Pearmain collection with stylist Max Pearmain, recognizes that they are two men making clothes for women—and who are they to say sequins are in or girlish skirts are right for 2020? Symonds says he and Pearmain question their role by trying to remove any kind of male gaze or fashion diktats from their clothing.Layering is at the core of the collection, with tiny vests worn under bomber jackets that pair with full skirts. Some pieces are tricks of the eye: knits fused with tops to give the illusion of two garments. Elsewhere the opposite proves to be true: Pants snap off into shorts.The silhouettes pay tribute to Yves Saint Laurent’s Russian collection. “There was a sense of glamour in a woman’s agency,” Symonds continued, saying that poshness shouldn’t come at the expense of comfort, motion, or durability. That’s why so much of the line is sparkly, kitschy fun—and why it’s made from practical cotton or easy knits. The idea of wardrobe essentials has for too long meant a beige blazer or proper pencil skirt. Why shouldn’t a woman’s everyday outfit be a white drill jumpsuit or a checkerboard sweater vest? At least it’s not boring. There’s a lot of us out here who want to dress as delightfully strange as we please without sacrificing function.
12 March 2020
Frieze London hosted a series of firsts this year—from installing the first augmented reality work by South Korean artist Koo Jeong to holding its first-ever fashion show. “It’s a first for Frieze, and an interesting context for us,” said Max Pearmain just before the third outing of the label he co-founded with artist Anthony Symonds.Frieze art fair falls on the end of fashion month and made an ideal platform for this emerging brand that might have otherwise gotten swallowed up during Fashion Week. Held inside The Standard, London Library space and presented by MatchesFashion.com, the duo’s presentation was concise but ambitious. The mainstays could be umbrellaed under “feminine utility”: poppered canvas co-ordinates, knitted skirt suits, and raw denim jumpsuits. “Utility and longevity are already core values for us,” said Pearmain. A cheeky nod to the art setting came via a white fitted shirtdress—an homage to Richard Prince’sNurseseries with a swift addition of a sex shop nurses’ hat.Symonds Pearmain is about wearability with added fashion cred. The knitwear coordinates looked fresh and best played out in a navy-and-white rugby stripe skirt and top made in the Pringle factory. The fine pastel knits were made in a traditional underwear factory in Leicester. The duo pride themselves on producing everything in the U.K. with fabric from dead stock suppliers. “We produce small quantities and do not overprice and subsequently discount,” added Symonds.The models circled around a sculpture of plastic dust sheets placed by the duo—both Slade School of Fine Art alums—and their team before the show. Their makeshift audacity feels almost of a different era of London fashion: that of the club scene. The ’80s current runs strong through the styling (pelerine school socks and Symonds Pearmain–branded duct tape kitten heels) and the actual clothing. “I wanted it to be about protective macs. Not chic trench coats, but macs. It felt more ’80s and real” said Symonds of the retina-jarring yellow and pink waterproofs. All macs were shown with collars drawn up to resemble high ruffs, that were, in fact, oversized Peter Pan collars that ruched when pulled. “If it’s a bit inclement, you can go up, or if you’re just feeling a bit dramatic,” said Symonds. With climate change looming and the only certainty being unpredictability, such focus on durability seems timely.
“I was really interested in things that persist and just go on, like this idea of these wax fabrics, which you just keep waxing, and they remain, and you keep them for life,” Symonds added.As traditional ways of showing are constantly being questioned, Pearmain was pleased that the art setting allowed for a more intimate and nuanced conversation. But, of course, at the end of the day, we are all speaking in a commercial language. So to an age-old debate: Is fashion art or art fashion? “Neither is either,” laughed Pearmain. “We make fashion and sometimes show in an art context. Get into it!” With Lily McMenamy’s provocative, cool-girl strut on the runway and a buzzy crowd including David Sims, Francesca Burns, and Kim Sion cheering from the sidelines, it appears the creative set are alreadyin.
8 October 2019
Designer Anthony Symonds and stylist Max Pearmain titled their Fall 2019 collection “Nostalgia Nostalgia.” Considering fashion’s ever-shortening backwards glance, what a red flag—or maybe not. As proven on the runway in MatchesFashion.com’s townhouse turned store, the duo are beyond common rehashings of archival ideas. Yes, the body-enveloping shapes of the ’80s returned on their runway (and some of the songs too), but Symonds is a deft and innovative patternmaker, giving his pieces boxier proportions and an intentional slouchiness. “I take a lot of shaping out of garments. I just crush it out, so you get this very, kind of—I suppose it’s quite a square fit for a woman, but it also has a loose utility feeling. There’s always a sense that the body is underneath it,” Symonds toldVogue’s Mark Holgate before the show.Safari suiting and knickerbocker shorts were the mainstays of the collection, remade in vintage fabrics. Dunmoy tea towels acquired on eBay were draped into jackets, and vintage William Morris curtains were cut to make blouson tops. “We’re re-proposing deliberately to say, this is not a seasonal proposition, it is a brand proposition,” said Symonds. Such sustainable antics can read as high and mighty if the clothes don’t stand to match, but these sexless, almost rough garments had serious appeal. Some likened them to Princess Di’s later looks, others remembered their ’80s club days, but most were just happy to see models on the runway having a good time. Led by Lily McMenamy, who choreographed bold movements that punctuated each turn, the models stomped out making graphic poses here and there. In the context of a massive e-tailer like Matches, such playfulness and sustainable practices were welcome.
18 February 2019