There was a lot of hype around Geoffrey Finch’s AW collection for Antipodium. Attracting London’s stylish young socialites such as Poppy Delvigne, there was plenty of talk about what Finch would bring to LFW this season. With a strong fervour for East London and its illogical, scruffy streets, the collection took inspiration from the urbanity of ugly architecture, cubic new builds, pubs and cocktail bars. Antipodium transferred the creative energy that now resides amongst the raw foundations of East London onto the runway. With an individual style rooted to the natural, there were subdued tones of tobacco grey, black, with camel, lilac and nude alongside sharp green and blue.

Street wear was the foundation of this collection, looking to London’s stylish young creatives and the wonky outfits of local eccentrics. The result was sportswear with a seriously high-fashion edge. The luxury of the fabrics, silk, wool, paper thin leather, and mohair tees were melded together throughout the show. An elongating pencil skirt was paired with a plastic bomber, under which was a soft tee of ‘Local bird’ print. Finch commissioned London taxidermy artist Reid Peppard to create a special print using two local ex-pigeons (who died of natural causes).

The rich narrative of this collection, connected to the street and the natural world saw the inclusion of rabbit fur and ‘faux’ silver fox. Lining the jackets, and acting as neck warmers, the fur added a real element of luxe to this urban collection. Slick simplicity through the monochrome looks showed how to make an all white outfit work in the winter. The prints and high quality details were up-lifting assets to  Finch’s street wear designs. Antipodium finally found its natural habitat in East London. He returned to high fashion this season confident, slick but with a few rough edges to show their true dedication to the street.