The story is the starting point for any garment and Poet Lab Creative Director Giuseppe Iaciofano’s story is one that has seen him overcome cancer and homophobic discrimination to reach a stage in his career where this season he showed at both New York and London Fashion Weeks.
Words by Brian James
Photos by Marcus Hartelt
Founded by Giuseppe in 2023, Poet Lab takes its name from the poetic minimalism which lies at the core of the brand’s design DNA. An aesthetic which seeks to redefine genderless luxury streetwear and that takes its influences from Milanese glamour, New York pragmatism and London’s streets. A trifecta of craft, narrative and sense of belonging that was evidenced in his S/S 27 collection “Remember”.
For London Fashion Week, “Remember” showcased to hordes of the fashionably inclined, outdoors, in former railway goods yards, deep in East London’s Bethnal Green. A location that was in perfect synchronicity with one of the key themes of the collection, Albania’s industrial architecture with its brutalist buildings and concrete caverns.
A visual reference to a fashion language that manifested itself in garments that took on their own architectural antecedents. One where oversized structural silhouettes, asymmetric tailoring and unexpected proportions appeared in a restrained colour palette and were imbued with an androgynous aesthetic. A vision, that as with all his work, was underpinned by ethical intentionality, with dead stock material donated or leftover from previous collections, used in the making of the pieces.
Asked what message Giuseppe wanted to convey through the collections evocative title, he said “I want you to remember how you feel, about each piece, which ones you like, which details you like, maybe you like a collar or a pattern, each piece is different from each other, the connectivity around this collection is its inclusivity. I want to make everyone feel like a piece of art.”
He added that “Memory is the only luxury that cannot be replicated. And the freedom to remember is the freedom to remain yourself.”
That freedom to be one’s authentic true self was further demonstrated through the show’s inclusive and diverse model casting. A cast which transcended genders and generations, this philosophy was embodied by the presence on the runway of the designer’s multi-hyphenate muse, iconic supermodel, philanthropist and LGBTQ activist Elton Ilirjani, who served looks that demanded we muse over them long after the show had ended.
Giuseppe told Flanelle “He’s an inspiration , a supermodel who’s going around the world and making himself visible, because people often judge. I asked him to be my star of the show and to be the most iconic piece, to be the entrance to the show.”
Asked how he felt his practice has evolved since A/W 26’s “Inside the Lab”, the designer said “I feel that while every piece is unique, this collection is more wearable , more of an everyday look.”
It’s a collection which definitely spoke to that continued evolution, one where the vision remained highly conceptual while the pieces possessed a wearable sophistication that invited new possibilities and potential. An assemblage of pieces that saw the designer further refine his practice while remaining true to the values and ethos which provide Poet Lab with its singular sensibility.
Asked how he wants the Poet Lab audience to feel when they wear his creations, Giuseppe told Flanelle that he wants them to feel seen , to be visible, adding that “Inclusivity and ethics, for me, are one word. Everyone can wear Poet Lab, with no judgement of who can wear what.”
That visibility extends to the designer’s own profile, with Poet Lab, as previously mentioned, having shown in New York and London during September. Asked how the two fashion capitals compared, the designer told Flanelle “I think there are two very different atmospheres, two different minds. In NYFW the story I told was of a homeless lady. I put a lady in a trash bag in my New York show and I just cast her in the morning of the show. London is all about vibes and nothing compares to London.”
Having undertaken this cross-continental fashion feat , Flanelle asked Giuseppe about his plans for the remainder of 2026. He told us that his aspiration would be for someone to stock his creations in their shop.
A designer who’s developing his creative vision without the limitations of current trends and who places self-expression as the cornerstone of all he does “Remember” is a collection that won’t easily be forgotten. We look forward to what Giuseppe Iaciofano and Poet Lab bring us next.
