8on8 AW20

Words by Edi Adegbola

Offering a glimpse into the suite life of the 1970s, 8on8’s AW20 show, presented by GQ China, opened with two old-fashioned bellhops (think Wes Andersen’s The Grand Budapest Hotel) striding the catwalk. Both in powder blue uniforms, the latter hotel worker was carrying luggage for an accompanying ‘guest’, himself wearing coral coloured silk pyjamas and a navy velvet blazer, complete with an exaggerated ‘pornstache’.

This set the tone for the louche, almost sleazy, collection, complete with satin tracksuits, leather trousers, and a red velvet twin set.

Showing his willingness to play with the catwalk medium, designer Li Gong deigns to tell a story with this collection. Determined to look simultaneously forwards and backwards, he imagines an extravagant party in the future where aged celebrities relive their glory days - hence the models ‘arriving’ at the hotel and ‘getting ready’, followed by models in slick evening wear,

Lighthearted and irreverent, the collection features bright colours and humorous touches, such as the aforementioned moustache, or models preparing for the party in dressing gowns with curlers in their hair.

Titled Wait Rose! 8on8’s AW20 offering repeatedly references roses, with red knitted flowers emblazoned on sweaters, blazers and necklaces, while a generous bouquet of real roses bulged from the arms of one model in a baker boy hat and a tweed coat. A humorous nod towards the current logomania trend, one knitted jumper, emblazoned with the emblem of supermarket chain Waitrose (a nostalgic reference, once again, to Li’s favourite shop while he was studying at Central Saint Martins) features a knitted rose in place of the ‘o’.

For this collection 8on8 has collaborated with Kappa, so numerous iterations of their iconic ‘Omini’ logo feature repeatedly on tracksuits, an oversized knitted sweater vest and even a luxurious fur trimmed silk dressing gown.

As for the evening wear, Li has experimented with silhouettes and bold colours, while using traditional materials like Harris Tweed. Elegant suits are paired with exaggerated accessories like scarves so long that the excess material must be held behind the model's back while, once again showing willingness to play with convention, the collection was closed by a plus size model in a coral double breasted tuxedo. 

And, being 8on8, a brand with playfulness in its DNA, the top button of the blazer was replaced by (what else?) a red rose.

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