LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM – “I want to destroy everything.” Those were the initial words in Matthew Miller’s show notes, and as a declaration on his aesthetic it’s pretty bang on. Miller’s fascination with deconstructionism has seen him pull all manner of menswear tropes apart in seasons past — the pinstriped suit, the jail uniform, the biker jacket, the army fatigue — and reassemble them with the frays and cuts and disjunctures worn with pride heart-on-sleeve, as badges of honor.
Today’s collection was a bit easier, with Miller sending out a his-and-hers lineup of clean-lined trendy basics in cool stone, burgundy, indigo and grey tones. Aside from a number of statement parts, most of the clothes were pleasantly androgynous — flat, disciplined, overlapping planes fraying out at the hem.
The material palette was dominated by Kvadrat upholstery materials — robust, resilient surfaces that gave every plane an intriguing stiffness and visual austerity. The patched-on zippered panels, adorned with oversized tags sealed ‘RESISTANT’ were a characteristic, waywardly provocative Miller touch. However they felt redundant for this explicit collection of agenda-free pieces; garments whose cut and construction already communicated everything that required to be said.