Last week, in London’s Shoreditch, the Winchester School of Art held their annual BA Fashion and Textiles graduate show. The event was an opportunity to discover the next generation of fashion talent, highlighted by the WSA Fashion Awards. On the night, Danish designer Peter presented the WSA Fashion Textiles Award to Suzanna James and the WSA Fashion Direction Award to Odella Yue. James’ collection, ‘The Great Outdoorsman’ turned to the Shetland Isles and Guernsey for inspiration by examining the historic role of knitwear in the regions through a complex study of stitch styles. Whereas Yue took a leap into pop culture by melding inspiration from retro arcade games and Studio 54. The result is the ‘Galaxy Racer Cub’, a collection that cleverly combines unconventional colours and textures. We caught up with the prize winners to find out a bit more about their work.
Odella Yue, 21, WSA Fashion Direction Award Winner
Where are you from?
I’m originally from Henan, China, but came to England when I was 13. Growing up there was fun, such a big, colourful and developed city.
Why did you choose to study fashion?
I’ve always known I wanted to go into design, but fashion was never just a career choice, it’s my passion and a way of life.
Which designers do you admire?
Thierry Mugler and Gareth Pugh are my heroes. I’m inspired by their understanding that fashion is more than just decorative, that it can be an armour, capturing the fragilities of the human body. Both designers have really opened my eyes and inspired me to be bolder with my work.
What are some of the biggest lessons you have learnt during your degree?
To always finish everything early.