I love a collaboration, so when the opportunity to work with my pal Zoe Stevenson presented itself I bit off the proverbial hand. Zoe is a costume designer- stylist- fashion designer (and yet more multi- hyphens too numerous to list here) and frequently travels the world making huge flashy events like the MTV awards look suitably impressive for her clients.
This brief was to kit out the Cirque du Soleil gymnasts with astronaut themed costumes for their performance at the BAFTA’s at the Royal Albert Hall. The concept was all about marking the 50th anniversary of sending a man to the moon, but of course they had to be extremely robust and versatile for the gymnasts.
Zoe had devised the collection of garments and I screen printed her geometric details onto the technical fabrics she’d selected for the job. We were using a gorgeous lightweight neoprene, which moved beautifully and ‘loved the ink’- it was very satisfying to screen print onto as the surface was so smooth and absorbent.
70 pieces later, the fabric panels were sent off to be made up by a genius maker, and I didn’t see them again till the night of the awards- Cirque du Soleil gave a mind-blowing performance, I was thrilled to have played a small part in bringing the show to life.
You can see the performance here- I do recommend, It’s quite stunning…
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=344715589465414
Cirque du Soleil Flyer
Cirque du Soleil flyers and catchers
Joanna Lumley & Cirque du Soleil backstage at the Royal Albert Hall. Pic: Zoe Stevenson