The Shoot: The Barbican Centre

Embrace your inner nineties child in this season’s puffa jackets in an array of bright colours, with touches of velvet, metallics and statement over-the-knee boots. 

For the first shoot of this year’s The September Issue, we went with something a bit different for the shoot. I’m not one to usually do streetwear shoots, but to do this trend justice you need to take the style onto the streets, since that is where it was born. As we’re all aware the nineties have been back in fashion for a good season or two. It seems the trend has upped its ante for autumn/winter 2016 as not only are choker necklaces the thing to wear this season, but sporty puffa jackets, over-the-knee boots and metallics are also back in style.

To celebrate this unusual clash of styles, where better to shoot it than the heart of London’s arts scene; the Barbican Centre. This imposing set of structures in the heart of the City of London is composed of a set of brutalist housing estates and the arts and theatre hub, the Barbican Centre itself. Envisaged at the height of the brutalist style in the 1970’s, it’s a mass of concrete and greenery with tall imposing columns, meandering walkways and secluded man-made lakes. To sum it up, the place is amazing for a shoot and I’m surprised I never done a shoot here before. But in a way it’s pretty perfect for this season’s take on the nineties trend. Nothing makes patent boots and bright jackets stand out more than lots of concrete.

This was shot during a particularly hot spell in London in August. We had temperatures often rising up to 30C during the day, which made the city unbearably sweltering. What made the heat even worse was the high humidity, so it felt more like August in New York than London with its cooler temperatures. So while this was shot at 9am, you can imagine how unbearable it is to shoot in thick padded jackets with the temperature steadily rising with every hour. I was sweating so much I was worried my make-up was going to run, but thankfully the photos turned out alright. Although by the time I was finished with the shoot I was seriously tempted to jump into that lake, if security weren’t floating around everywhere.

So let me know what you think of this shoot. Did I do the trend justice?

Outfit 1 –  Cropped puffa jacket: Bershka, found here – Grey knit dress: H&M, found here – Black patent over the knee boots: Daisy Street, found here – Coca Cola can cross-body bag: Skinnydip, found here – Velvet choker necklace: New Look, in stores now

Outfit 2 – White cropped puffa jacket: Zara, found here – Blue velvet crop top: Miss Selfridge, found here – Blue velvet leggings: Miss Selfridge, found here – Silver sporty slip-on sandals: River Island, found here – Silver square backpack: Miss Selfridge, found here – Grey wide velvet choker necklace: New Look, in stores now