While most fashion designers who showed their Spring/Summer 2014 collections during the latest edition of London Collections: Men chose to investigate the possibilities of colour, pattern and texture, young menswear designer Lee Roach remained faithful to his proclivity towards minimalism. In a collection that accentuated the concepts of uniformity and construction, Roach celebrated a functional silhouette where garments are devoid of ornament (such as collars, lapels, linings and buttons) and primacy is given to utilitarianism in the form of fastening straps and hidden zips.
The fabrics chosen for the collection mirrored Roach’s penchant for a functional fashion noted for the absence of superficial adornment and redundant purposes: lightweight and water-repellent cottons, soft unwashed Japanese denim, butter soft leather and raw knitwear took centre stage in a neutral palette of black, navy and sand. Breaking the monochromatic mould, Roach featured an abstract print (that is also available to purchase from London designer department store Dover Street Market) in a couple of sleeveless tops, as well as a desert camouflage print that served to stress the importance and influence of military garb in the sartorial realm. A range of caps, canvas bags and slip-on shoes complemented the collection.
Lee Roach graduated from London’s Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in 2010 and worked for Meadham Kirchhoff, Kilgour and Peter Saville before launching his eponymous label. His Spring/Summer 2011 collection featured in Selfridges’ Bright Young Things initiative and his designs have featured in several publications, including Wonderland, Hero, I-D, GQ, Vogue and Dazed & Confused.
