Matty Bovan's maximalist designs have unexpected ties to Italian fashion
MILAN — Matty Bovan's forward-thinking maximalism is off to Milan this season and he absolutely wants to take his rebellious spirit in city fashion, traditionally rooted in wearability.
"I'm incredibly excited because I'm so used to London and it really is an exciting opportunity for me," Bovan told WWD, zooming in from Yorkshire in the UK a few days before the show, which is scheduled for September 25 at 4 p.m. CET. The show is supported by Dolce & Gabbana as part of a mentorship program launched last February that invites young names to Milan Fashion Week and provides them with fabrics and materials.
"When they first contacted me, I came to Milan, I think, in June for their men's show. I had a meeting with them, they were great and very supportive, they loved my use of color and texture, they told me to do whatever I wanted," said explained Bovan.
Related GalleriesGraduating from Central Saint Martins in 2015 with a master's degree in fashion knitting, his graduation collection studies earned him the L'Oréal Professionel Creative Award, followed by the prestigious LVMH Graduate Prize, which included 10,000 euros and a junior designer internship at Louis Vuitton under Nicolas Ghesquière.
A self-portrait by Matty Bovan. Courtesy of Matty BovanIn 2021, the designer wins the Woolmark Prize, attributing his mastery of knit design, as seen by Bovan as its strongest link with Italian fashion.
"Italy is the knitwear capital of the world, so I already kind of affinity with the Italians' love of texture and color,” he offered.
"This is really exciting for me who may be a little rebellious when it comes to of how I do the job, [I'm] slightly a bit tormented, which I think is the goal of someone in my position anyway, to challenge people's expectations, their level of taste and what people know, especially young people,” he said.
"I want them to look at the collection and think, 'Oh, you know I want to learn how to knit, how to crochet, how to screen print." That's my role in many ways, to challenge the status quo and push it forward," he added.
Building on his Fall 2022 creative vision of "chaos and destruction", the spring range marks an evolution which he described as "controlled chaos", distilled into the manipulation of texture which Bovan called "camouflage".
Don't expect military hardware.
MILAN — Matty Bovan's forward-thinking maximalism is off to Milan this season and he absolutely wants to take his rebellious spirit in city fashion, traditionally rooted in wearability.
"I'm incredibly excited because I'm so used to London and it really is an exciting opportunity for me," Bovan told WWD, zooming in from Yorkshire in the UK a few days before the show, which is scheduled for September 25 at 4 p.m. CET. The show is supported by Dolce & Gabbana as part of a mentorship program launched last February that invites young names to Milan Fashion Week and provides them with fabrics and materials.
"When they first contacted me, I came to Milan, I think, in June for their men's show. I had a meeting with them, they were great and very supportive, they loved my use of color and texture, they told me to do whatever I wanted," said explained Bovan.
Related GalleriesGraduating from Central Saint Martins in 2015 with a master's degree in fashion knitting, his graduation collection studies earned him the L'Oréal Professionel Creative Award, followed by the prestigious LVMH Graduate Prize, which included 10,000 euros and a junior designer internship at Louis Vuitton under Nicolas Ghesquière.
A self-portrait by Matty Bovan. Courtesy of Matty BovanIn 2021, the designer wins the Woolmark Prize, attributing his mastery of knit design, as seen by Bovan as its strongest link with Italian fashion.
"Italy is the knitwear capital of the world, so I already kind of affinity with the Italians' love of texture and color,” he offered.
"This is really exciting for me who may be a little rebellious when it comes to of how I do the job, [I'm] slightly a bit tormented, which I think is the goal of someone in my position anyway, to challenge people's expectations, their level of taste and what people know, especially young people,” he said.
"I want them to look at the collection and think, 'Oh, you know I want to learn how to knit, how to crochet, how to screen print." That's my role in many ways, to challenge the status quo and push it forward," he added.
Building on his Fall 2022 creative vision of "chaos and destruction", the spring range marks an evolution which he described as "controlled chaos", distilled into the manipulation of texture which Bovan called "camouflage".
Don't expect military hardware.
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