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Models adorning classy and sassy silhouettes from the kingdom’s celebrated women’s designer wear Noon By Noor, not only posed at London Fashion Week in the label’s autumn and winter 2023 creations but also presented the looks in a film format.
The fashionable affair, held at London’s Royal College of Physicians (RCP), featured long, lean, and chic looks with skirts and coats that grazed the floor as well as an assortment of stunning pieces that fit within anyone’s wardrobe any time.
The concept for the new collection came about as cousins and childhood friends Shaikha Noor Al Khalifa and Shaikha Haya Al Khalifa saw a dialogue of images from French illustrator Francois Berthoud and his book titled Facsimile.
“First commissioned by Anna Piaggi for Conde Nast’s Vanity Fair, his work soon appeared in all leading magazines, including Vogue, Numero and Interview,” shared Shaikha Noor.
“Beautiful high–impact imagery that blends art, fashion and communication created in tones of black, grey and browns – this was a starting point,” she added.
“Sometimes we are so busy looking outward that we forget to look inward, and this season, we looked at the things surrounding us as we grew up - art, culture and the beauty of our home.”
The designer duo, who studied fashion in the US and brought their vision to Bahrain after graduation, showcased their autumn and winter attire on models at the RCP, while a creative catwalk film captured on the grounds of the non-profit art gallery RAK Art Foundation in Bahrain was also showcased.
Founded by Bahraini artist, collector and Bahrain National Arts Council chairman Shaikh Rashid bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, the gallery was originally built in the 1930s and converted into a traditional Bahraini house where he was raised. It contains myriad works from international artists and his oeuvre.
According to Shaikha Haya, the original artwork by Shaikh Rashid, entitled CUSP (2020), set the perfect catwalk backdrop, showing the moment of transition between the sun and the moon — the point where two curves meet.
“As we developed the three-dimensional silhouettes on our house model, we took photographs both in the studio and outdoors,” she explained. “Clothes move and are lived in, so we always want to see the collection on the body.”
The collection boasts a contrast of dense, opaque cloths and light transparencies to create a wardrobe inspired by ‘shared’ or ‘borrowed’ menswear pieces translated into a reconsidered idea of seasonal wardrobe dressing.
Column-cut cowl front dresses carry precise cuts and constructions and are as easy to wear as a t-shirt. Classic sailor collars can be worn on t-shirt shape shirts or tunics and lean quilted coats and jackets can be worn with dresses.
Long, languid looks in bias cuts created from soft melton wools are also a hit as well as jackets cut with precision and shape and patched together using tones of noir.
Their paired back designs reflect a 90s minimal New York scene combined with an understated element of tradition, craft and avant-garde glamour.
The duos designs have been considered fabulous since they founded their venture in 2008. They were recognised as the first GCC-based fashion brand to showcase at the New York Fashion Week in 2013 prior to shifting to LFW.
Their designs have always been modern and effortless with a focus on striking prints and intricate embellishments while drawing inspiration from both Eastern and Western influences.
Stars and celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez, Solange Knowles, Alexa Chung, Kate Bosworth, Poppy Delevingne, Olivia Palermo and Blake Lively, to name a few, have been spotted wearing their glam garbs over the years.
