London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2025 was in full swing, and among the many highly anticipated shows, JW Anderson’s collection stood out like a rebellious breath of fresh air. Hosted at the atmospheric Old Billingsgate, with its Victorian architecture and views of Tower Bridge, the location alone set the tone for a show that was anything but conventional. In a space where fish once dominated the scene, today it was Jonathan Anderson’s eponymous brand that took centre stage, reimagining femininity through subversive silhouettes and a materiality-driven approach.
Anderson’s interpretation of femininity came through in an unexpected color palette. Saccharine pink sequin minidresses and architectural hemlines on negligee-like dresses dominated the runway, giving girlish hues an edge. The boldness extended to stiff leather skirts—tough, tutu-inspired shapes that veered dangerously close to avant-garde. There was a clear throughline to the brand’s famed accessories here, with the fabrications of JW Anderson’s cult handbags informing the collection’s structural choices. Leather was more than just an accessory—it became the star material, central to Anderson’s vision for the season.
Speaking of materials, Anderson’s deep dive into materiality was perhaps the most impressive aspect of this collection. Leather, silk, and cashmere formed the bedrock of the SS25 lineup. The exploration of these fabrics led to a tactile feast, where the unexpected met the familiar in surprising ways. 3D-printed trompe l’oeil effects turned silk minidresses into faux knits, and wool strips were woven into dresses that appeared ready to take flight. These were clothes that demanded a second look, a closer examination to fully grasp their complexity. It was as if each piece held its own little secret—a detail or a fabrication twist that only revealed itself upon careful observation.
What was most striking, though, was how the collection balanced this technical prowess with a certain simplicity. "I like this idea of focus," Anderson noted post-show. This season’s looks didn’t rely on excessive embellishments or gimmicks. Instead, Anderson honed in on the power of a few well-chosen materials and allowed the craftsmanship to shine through. A typographic silk print, lifted from Clive Bell’s theory of design, made its way onto minimalist dresses, underscoring Anderson’s cerebral approach to fashion—always balancing between art and wearability.
And yet, for all its intellectual underpinnings, the collection didn’t feel aloof or inaccessible. Quite the opposite, in fact. The biker boots—a JW Anderson staple—offered a grounded counterpoint to the high-concept garments. Flat, slouchy, and adorned with an oversized zipper, they were as approachable as they were quirky, perfectly encapsulating Anderson’s knack for making the offbeat feel desirable. These boots, paired with flowing skirts and structured tops, were the ultimate statement of the collection’s overarching theme: setting boundaries to find liberation.
It wouldn’t be a JW Anderson show without a buzzworthy accessory, and this season’s standout was undoubtedly the debut of the Loafer Bag. This rectangular shoulder bag, with its menswear-inspired whale-tail penny keeper, was a subtle yet significant statement—another testament to Anderson’s ability to elevate the mundane. With its slightly slouchy silhouette, the Loafer Bag is sure to be a hit, destined to pop up on the arms of fashion’s elite in the coming months.
JW Anderson’s SS25 show was, as expected, a masterclass in contradictions. It played with the idea of femininity but twisted it into something more layered, more complex. It explored the boundaries of materials but did so with an eye for simplicity. And, as always, it challenged our expectations of what fashion can be—an exploration, a dialogue, a push and pull between past and future.
