Deryck Walker

Set against a whimsical, if a little eerie, film of paper windmills,
Deryck Walker presented his aw08/09 catwalk show ‘A Wolf In Sheep’s
Clothing’ and it delivered all that you’d expect from Mr Walker -
crisp shirts, expert tailoring and some damn good design.

The women sauntered along the catwalk in woolen pencil skirts cut in
such a way that they could only extract a wiggle from the wearer -
fitting for the ‘bourgeois temptress’ that Deryck is presenting. With
a muted palette of black, navy and white, it’s the subtle design
detail that you must appreciate; razor-sharp knife pleats on an a-
line skirt, a carefully constructed windmill waistcoat and gentle
fabric overlays to exaggerate shoulders. An enormous padded cocoon
cape restrained by elegant ribbon ties is made subtly sexy by the
minimal areas of skin it reveals.

The menswear ranged from the signature suit to streetwear. A classic
navy overcoat finds itself vandalised by an outsized hooded coat
layered over it, a snoopy-style pilot hat is reworked in wool and
woven into a woolen blazer and shirts made using Cotton USA are
expertly streamlined into ergonomic shapes. There is an air of
wearable luxury in all of Deryck’s clothes - pieces you’d feel lucky
to own but couldn’t help wearing on a daily basis.

The stand-out look from the womenswear is a ‘magpie dress’ - as an
alternative to the abundance of sequins available at the moment the
dress is constructed with layers of joiner’s ‘biscuits’ - leaf shaped
wood joins. For the men it’s the heavy ‘show coat’ made out of
checkerboard wool created exclusively for Deryck by Holland & Sherry
and Calzeat.

A fusion of androgyny and seduction, this collection offers unique
shapes and fine finishing - pre-requisites to any Deryck Walker design.

Words: Selene Pearson
Photos: Andrew Lamb