FASHION
Exploring Wales Through Jayne Pierson’s Art-Driven Fashion
An unforgettable London Fashion Week collection fusing Mythology and the Welsh Government
BY VANESA KRIZONYTE
Andaz Hotel, London, 14th September 2024. A model walks in the Jayne Pierson Spring Summer 2025 Catwalk show. ©Chris Yates/ Chris Yates Media
In the heart of London Fashion Week, spot-lighted Jayne Pierson’s SS25 ‘Annwn’ collection. Through a story narrative, the show explored the rich heritage of Wales, mythology and cultural self-identity as a designer. Collaborating with renowned partners such as Devji Aurum, infused the presentation with spiritual depth, showcasing lavish Welsh Gold. Pierson has exhibited her works in numerous art galleries in the UK and internationally, including Tate Modern and the Art Basel. While many fashion shows dazzle with beauty, Pierson’s show also sparked thoughtful dialogue. At her exclusive After-party, guests engaged in deep intellectual conversations. Two weeks later, everyone is still talking about it.
The growing curiosity around Jayne Pierson’s creative ethos and rise to the fashion’s elite invites a deeper conversation about the creative ethos and journey behind the designs.
How have you been since London Fashion Week?
Jayne Pierson: We’re busy ahead of another show for the Art Basel in Miami at the beginning of December. They asked me to put on a catwalk show under the guise of wearable art, this concept of elevating fashion into that sphere. We’re taking the London Catwalk to Miami on a larger scale, about 600 capacity.
How does the screen printing of artworks impact the future of museology? Does the blur of art and fashion cause issues?
Jayne: I’ve been painting on fabrics before fabric paints existed. At the time, I didn’t know if I liked it. It was a type of Jackson Pollock’s idea of action painting and emotion.
Lee Lapthorne, a showcase producer, asked me to curate a show under the concept of Punk. I thought about artists I would consider Punk as opposed to music per se. Looking at Duchamp, Jackson Pollock and Basquiat, I started painting on the fabrics. It all evolved from there.
They were press pieces to put an idea across. They were not commercial. I don’t produce anything of any quantity. Everything is bespoke and made to order. Everything is just an idea and hopefully inspirational.
Andaz Hotel, London, 14th September 2024. A model walks in the Jayne Pierson Spring Summer 2025 Catwalk show. ©Chris Yates/ Chris Yates Media
Building on the conceptual foundations laid by Duchamp, the 20th century saw a profound shift in the philosophy of art. This transformation gave rise to new artistic movements such as Abstract Expressionism and Neo-Expressionism. Artists of this era can be seen as explorers, using experimentation to fuse historical influences with contemporary perspectives. Their work reflects the inner workings of the creative mind, pushing boundaries and redefining the role of art in understanding and interpreting the world.
Do you encounter struggles with the properties of leather?
Jayne: There is an Atlantic leather that uses fish skins. They all come in strips of fish skin, and we sew them together and create leather. There is also Piñatex, which is pineapple leather. There are quite a few different plant products that you can use to replace leather. The leather and the shielding that we use are all Welsh-based. A leather garment tends to last a lot longer than a faux.
The season before last, we worked with the United Nations Solaris community, developing a fabric like a silk taffeta. We also work with Stratasys, 3D printing, where the lenticular lens embellishment is made from ocean plastic waste.
It is a fun challenge to work with different materials alongside storytelling!
To us, Jayne Pierson is a 21st-century artistic explorer. In a fashion landscape dominated by sales-driven and influencer-overloaded designers, Pierson stands apart creating works of art that draw from historical and mythological inspiration, seamlessly connecting the heritage of Wales with global fashion capitals. A teleport back to Jackson Pollock’s studio, where splattered paint gave birth to new techniques-Pierson’s portfolio evokes a similar sense of experimentation, particularly in her innovative use of leather. The intangible glitches in space and time through the story-telling aspect of the ‘Annwn’ collection take us on a journey to an otherworld and it’s refreshing to hear that the brand’s mission is to be “an art-driven fashion house with no limits.”
Jayne: The collections are about the story, character and muse. I get caught up in the storytelling aspect and the narrative more than the fashion. I have a love-hate relationship with the term fashion because I don’t do anything that trends. Since starting in 2009, we have not manufactured for collections or stock in shops.
We tend to dress quite a few celebrities as my background is music. It’s a natural progression to talk about their concepts and what they need from a garment to become somebody else and perform the character for their album or event.
Andaz Hotel, London, 14th September 2024. Jayne Pierson Spring Summer 2025 Catwalk show. © Diana Gomez
Tell us about the concept of Welsh Gold protecting the wearer. What does the jewellery mean for the consumer?
It was the first foray for me to get into jewellery. I had done it before as an embellishment when I worked with McQueen and Westwood, but it wasn’t something I had done for my range. It followed the idea of using Celtic mythology and Mabinogion stories. The last princess of Wales was Gwenllian. I thought it would be great to base the collection around her story. She lived 10 minutes from my house in this huge castle, which is still there. I wanted to use the motifs of Wales. It is about the never-ending cycle of life, birth and death.
Welsh gold is very rare. This is why the pieces are numbered and limited-edition. For the big collars, we only made five, so each one is numbered inside and signed by myself. I worked on them for about a year.
Andaz Hotel, London, 14th September 2024. Jayne Pierson Spring Summer 2025 Catwalk show. © Diana Gomez
Wales is a place about mythologies. It is very spiritual, a place where people would come to have healing. I incorporated the feeling of protection when you put it on, like a talisman. And bizarrely, I did feel that when I put it on. The models said they also felt that when they put it on backstage. It was emotional!
In a dimly lit room, two central candelabras flickered to the entrance of in-tune models adorned with exquisite 24K Welsh Gold. Moving in harmony with the music, model Mae Ling twirled her hands, sending golden reflections across the catwalk from her bangle. Gracing the London guests with sensuous healing and awakening energy. This collaboration with Devji Aurum embodied a rich legacy, with each piece crafted from the precious Welsh Gold, connecting tradition to the present.
Andaz Hotel, London, 14th September 2024. Jayne Pierson Spring Summer 2025 Catwalk show. © Diana Gomez
Jayne: I wanted to bring the models to life in some way. I wanted them to embody the garments and feel an emotional exchange with the clothing.
How is the Jayne Pierson brand positioned within the Welsh council? What is the power of a fashion house collaborating with the Welsh Government?
Jayne: It’s a natural extension for me to talk about Wales because I’m Welsh. After I finished working with Westwood, I wanted to move back to Wales with my family and have a studio. It was about my roots and figuring out what I was creating and why we needed another dress.
We create bespoke fabrics for my collections at a 125-year-old woollen mill close to me. The head office of Burberry used to be based here, so there are a lot of highly trained seamstresses and technicians that live in rural Wales. I work with quite a few of them. We are cutting down on carbon emissions.
When I had the opportunity to work with the Welsh government and take brands to an international platform such as Fashion Week, I jumped at it. I feel fashion and design aren’t synonymous with Welsh culture. I think they should be. There are fashion design universities in Wales, but because there are not enough designers here to offer industry placements, they all go to London and Europe to get experience. So we’re not keeping those skills in Wales, and I think it’s really important to do that.
The embedded cultural Welsh symbolism and historical language carry Jayne Pierson not only as the leading designer of our time but also as a well-rounded ambassador of Wales. Rooting into the community surrounding Jayne’s studio has redefined the fashion landscape with a fresh, localised vision. We are often guilty of associating fashion solely with cities like London, New York, Milan and Paris. Yet, the storytelling behind the ‘Annwn’ collection proves that extraordinary talent is found everywhere in the world and promotes the importance of supporting local creative communities.
Jayne: I went to St Martin’s. I think if you stay in London, there are only certain networks that will facilitate and promote designers. If you move out of London, you become more independent and forge your way of working. You become less involved in the commodification and mass production of garments. It is important to rationalise your motivations and think about the environment.
The tranquillity of the countryside likely helps with the mental health aspect and creative flow. As an artist, you need time to be a free spirit.
Jayne: My daughters are involved in the shows. It is very family-oriented.
I learned from both Lee and Westwood that to be in it for the long term, you have to make it suit you and your lifestyle and what you want to achieve, as opposed to being on the fashion cycle of this never-ending two seasons a year business.
Did the designers inspire your work aesthetically?
I was doing print with Lee and pattern-cutting with Vivienne. You see how they developed, just like Madeleine Vionnet with Galliano. Inevitably, you are picking up things and designs that they have tweaked and evolved in their processes over the years. You are a kind of facet of who you worked with. So I’m a bit of Westwood. I’m a bit of Lee, I’m a bit of Givenchy, a little bit of Dior, a little bit of everything.
Just like a fashion collection, you’re all picking pieces and parts of a story and editing it together, so it’s truly unique.
Deepest gratitude to Jayne Pierson for speaking with us. The interview was conducted on 8, October 2024. Thank you to Black PR for sharing Jayne Pierson with London.
Links:
Londonfashionweek.co.uk/designers/jayne-pierson
