Dear Shaded Viewers and Diane,
Affectionately referred to as “The Barefoot Anthropologist”, or alternatively, “The Most Offending Soul Alive”, the larger-than-life 20th century personality of Major Tom Harnett Harrisson is Christopher Raeburn’s muse for the spring to come. Parachuted in Borneo during the Second World War, he resolved never to leave again, and made of the island his brand new home in Southeast Asia. A soundscape of roaring showers at the Old Sorting Office echoes in London Borneo’s 140 million years old rainforest, as the first models walk in, wearing some serious frowns, endearingly tousled hairstyles, and swishing waterproof fabrics to match. Christopher’s trademark reclaimed parachutes, especially topical this season, are craftily cut and layered in stripes, adding textures to covetable sportswear and jersey staples, paired with sandals and swamp green socks. Harrisson’s military background is further referenced with recovered and redeemed sleeping bags and bivouac canopies, and camouflage prints which upon closer inspection reveal themselves to be tiny, swinging orangutans: Christopher Raeburn’s latest seasonal mascot. As they turn into cuddly oversized rucksack that look just like King Louie – the Disney’s Jungle Book character, not the rapper – a percentage of each bag sold will be donated to the Orangutan Foundation to help protect this species at risk. It’s no romanticized idea of the tropics that Christopher has, with parrot feathers and fruity hues, rather a highly practical one, with bombers, hoods and windbreakers, fit for survival in the jungle and metropolis alike. Still, occasionally, an inconspicuous graceful touch: the sarong of the Sarawak tribes urbanized with technical fabrics, crossed woven styles that recall those in their traditions, or the use or cork for details, pockets or backpacks, that hint to the elegance of natural resources.
Later,
Silvia
