British Designer Grace Wales Bonner Is Headed to Hermes

"In an poignant addendum to the game of designer musical chairs that's swept up the luxury fashion world in recent months, British designer Grace Wales Bonner has been tapped as the new creative director of men's ready-to-wear at luxury French label Hermès."

""I am deeply honoured to be entrusted with the role of Creative Director of Hermès Men's Ready-to-Wear. It is a dream realised to embark on this new chapter, following in a lineage of inspired craftspeople and designers," said Wales Bonner in a release from the brand. A graduate of London's illustrious Central Saint Martens College, Wales Bonner has developed a name for herself via her eponymous brand, which she founded in 2015, built a reputation as one of the most precocious purveyors of a distinctive and thoughtful commercialism in recent memory."

"Casual consumers will most likely recognize her ongoing collaborations with Adidas - the designer's cult Samba has been credited as one of the main re-energizers powering the brand's recent explosion - but admirers and fashion fans alike are just as reticent to celebrate her mainline collections, which have historically leaned on '70s-era inspiration and a considered dancehall aesthetic to masterfully blend a cultivated vision of modern-day London style. (Recent collections have proved out as darker and, curiously, preppier.)"

Grace Wales Bonner has been appointed creative director of Hermès men's ready-to-wear. The appointment followed the departure of longtime menswear designer Véronique Nichanian. Wales Bonner graduated from London's Central Saint Martens College and founded her eponymous brand in 2015. The brand established a reputation for distinctive, thoughtful commercialism and has earned widespread plaudits. Collaborations with Adidas, notably a cult Samba, contributed to Adidas's recent resurgence. Design influences include 1970s-era inspiration and a considered dancehall aesthetic, producing a cultivated vision of modern-day London style; recent collections have been darker and unexpectedly preppier. The brand has achieved commercial success while remaining relatively unscathed by criticism.

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