How wearable is sculptural fashion off the runway? Loewe and Schiaparelli are renowned for their conceptual designs, while Jack Irving, Kay Kwok and Terrence Zhou take a futuristic approach

Aug 14 , 2023

Futuristic designs may be the future for sculptural fashion. Photos: Handout, @jackirvingstudio/Instagram

Loewe, Schiaparelli and Comme des Garçons are renowned for challenging fashion norms on the runway – and so are these up-and-coming designers Kay Kwok, Jack Irving and Terrence Zhou

Irving creates futuristic pieces for Lady Gaga, the Spice Girls, Cheryl, Paris Hilton and Doja Cat; Kwok was the first Hong Kong designer to dress Beyoncé; and Zhou has worked with Kris Jenner

From Loewe’s anthurium dresses and audacious “petal” heels and Schiaparelli’s life-size animal heads pinned on garments, to Comme des Garçons challenging norms with a boxy dress resembling washing-up gloves, the dialogue between fashion and sculpture is nothing new.

Kylie Jenner attends the Schiaparelli haute couture spring/summer 2023 collection presented in Paris, on January 23. Photo: AP

Indeed, this dynamic interplay between the two creative arts has been consistently tested within the fashion industry. Designers persistently push the boundaries of their collections, capturing audiences with surreal and one-of-a-kind showcases.

Models present creations from the womenswear ready-to-wear spring/summer 2023 collection by Loewe during a presentation at the Paris Fashion Week (PFW), in Paris, in September 2022 – including the brand’s eye-catching anthurium dress. Photo: EPA-EFE

But it does prompt the question: how wearable are these outfits off the runway? Isn’t fashion, in its most conventional and functional form, meant to be worn on the streets too? Style chats to three up-and-coming fashion designers, who are inspired by avant-garde concepts, to find out.

Futuristic influences

Jack Irving’s designs are out of this world. Photo: @jackirvingstudio/Instagram

Some of today’s emerging young designers look to futuristic influences to create their sculptural works for the runway.

In wearable art, Jack Irving says, the “art is wearing you”. Irving, an artist and designer from Blackpool in the UK who now runs his design studio in London, is well known for his work in creating cosmic worlds of his hyperreality.

“For me, it’s finding inspiration in blurring the lines between sculpture and garment, making the human body a subject for art, and playing with the limits of fashion in that way,” he tells us in an exclusive interview.