London (AFP)

The Canadian Mark Fast and the Turkish Bora Aksu presented their spring / summer 2021 collections at London Fashion Week on Friday, few designers to maintain parades with public in these times of pandemic.

Long dresses with overlapping ruffles, translucent pastel colors, the atmosphere was romantic on the side of Bora Aksu.

Wearing delicate tulle masks, the models paraded outside in front of a few spectators at a good distance from each other.

Tonic awakening from knitting ace Mark Fast who dares green and neon pink in a streetwear collection.

The "FAST" logo hoodie is worn over a tight skirt ending in feathers.

Only a handful of the 80 designers attending this Fashion Week maintained “physical” catwalks, most showcasing their designs in videos posted online, or only by appointment to a small number of buyers and fashion columnists.

For some, the health context was an opportunity to rethink this fashion event.

Halpern paid tribute to public service employees by asking eight of them to play the models in a video presenting the collection.

One of them, Arianna, a Spanish nurse living in London, swapped her hospital gown for a powder pink and black feathered dress with leopard-print sleeves.

"This collection was created to celebrate women on the front line (facing the pandemic) and for all those who can inspire and encourage", explains Michael Halpern, American designer of 31 years.

The queen of punk Vivienne Westwood, whose husband Andreas Kronthaler, 25 years younger, is currently designing the collections for her house, has used Fashion Week to send a message: "Buy less, dress well , swap clothes ".

"Wear your evening clothes to the office if you go back to work, mix up the seasons - our goal is to show only one collection per year," says the 79-year-old designer and activist, against the tide of "fast fashion" "and its damage to the environment.

Its unisex collection is inspired by traditional English cuts, taking liberties with prints and accessories such as buttons.

On the mannequins' masks, two words sum up the designer: "True Punk" ("True punk").

© 2020 AFP