As fashion month moves along at lightning speed, you may have missed some stunning collections on the way. One such ready-to-wear collection being that of Halpern, the fashion brand of London-based designer Michael Halpern who has, in recent years, dressed the likes of Lupita Nyong’o and Amal Clooney.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, fashion month has seen some very interesting changes, particularly in regards to the format of the shows themselves. While some brands simply couldn’t wait to get back on the runway, others such as Vivetta Ponta in Milan and Edeline Lee in London, decided to embrace the use of digital media to showcase their creations. Halpern also decided this was a worthy approach, and it proved the perfect formula.

Growing up in New York, Michael Halpern would often visit the Saratoga Performing Arts Centre which the prestigious New York City Ballet would often use for rehearsals and test runs, and it was here that he discovered a fascination for the art of ballet. “It was very informal, so you were allowed to go backstage to look at the costumes and meet the dancers”, he said as part of a docu-style video made to go alongside this new collection. “My mom has this funny story - I don’t know if it’s true or not - where I would go under the tutus and see how they were made.”

Halpern’s Spring 2022 collection, which, while technically ready-to-wear, features many couture ideas and techniques, is an exploration of movement and a celebration of the art one’s body can create. The collection was filmed in the Royal Opera House with the models being stars of the ballet company Fumi Kaneko, Sumina Sasaki, Marianna Tsembenhoi, Leticia Dias, Katharina Nikelski, Céline Gittens, Sae Maeda and Marcelino Sambé, all using their bodies to display the garments. More than just a love letter to ballet, the collection is a tribute to the performing arts world and all it has suffered over the last 18 months. “They had to set up sprung floors and ballet bars in their homes, so that [the] moment the restrictions lifted they would be ready to go on stage”. It is now clear that Halpern finds his inspirations from real people and their experiences, demonstrated last year when he use 8 frontline workers in his fashion week presentation.

The collection is a real mix of very wearable garments as well as pieces that are on the more experimental side, excellent for editorial and red carpet. What blends the collection together though is the movement of all the pieces, in a way that is reminiscent of Halston’s designs for the battle of Versailles in 1973. Many of the garments feature tulle, a quintessential fabric in the ballet world while other garments use leather, juxtaposing the classical ballet world with the contemporary. While the garments themselves have their own energy, it is the movements of the dancers that brings them to life in an awe-inspiring way.

“The reason I make this type of clothing is for fantasy and escapism and, you know, truly feeling euphoric. And that’s what I think ballet is for. It really takes you away for a moment, and that’s what we try to do too.” Halpern said of the collection. “Putting those two things together, for me, just felt like so much synergy.”