FASHION GENERATION is an exhibition that showcases many of the best young designers to have emerged in London over the last thirty years, like Christopher Kane, Charles Jeffrey and Gareth Pugh. Since the founding of the British Fashion Council's NEWGEN Programme in 1993, successive generations of creative minds have exploded onto the fashion scene, establishing new brands, challenging existing systems and introducing innovative approaches that have influenced fashion globally. NEWGEN offers designers mentoring and business training, financial support, and opportunities to show their work, and recipients are encouraged to take risks, to experiment and above all, to find their voice. Co-curated by Sarah Mower, who has reported on developments in fashion for this period, the exhibition also focuses on the education, inspiration and business opportunities that can be found in London, as a city that exemplifies the economic, social and political shifts of the past three decades.
The FASHION GENERATION publication presents the key themes and messages of the exhibition, not as discrete chapters, but as an echo of the exhibition, which provides layers of information and interpretation around themes and objects. The flamboyant DIY, constant experimentation and unique innovations on show in the exhibition will also inform the design of the book.
In the publication, the voices of the curators and the designers that appear in the exhibition will be extended, with a longer introductory essay by co-curator Sarah Mower and extended quotes from designers. In addition, writers, academics, educators and activists will be commissioned to produce new texts. As the first exhibition in the UK to provide a survey of British fashion from this period, the FASHION GENERATION publication offers readers the opportunity to access a full record of all 300+ designers to have received NEWGEN support since 1993, insights into the processes and locations where designers have researched, fabricated and shown their early collections in London, and extended essays.
