London Fashion Week: Richard Nicoll and the Re-Return of the Thin White Duke

When a womenswear designer cites David Bowie as an inspiration, nine times out of ten you can expect a Technicolor whirlwind through his glammed-out Ziggy Stardust years.

Perhaps that's why it's so refreshing that, when Richard Nicoll paid homage to Bowie with his Spring 2011 collection, he was instead referencing his monochrome years as the archly elegant Thin White Duke. Impossibly attenuated, with a shock of red hair and a sharply tailored tuxedo, Bowie's stark, teutonic Duke was perhaps the most acclaimed character of his career, and has long provided menswear with a style icon. With the classic Station to Station album serving as the show's soundtrack (and a sharp-cheekboned Bowie doppelgänger opening the show), Nicoll perfectly translated the Thin White Duke's "minimal glamour" into chic, shapely looks for women. Even the models' orange cheeks seemed to pay homage.

Androgynous and alluringly feminine in equal measure, Richard Nicoll seized the fashion world's ubiquitous 70's trend and filtered it through the elegance of the 1940s. Black and white, understandably, dominated in looks that referenced vintage erotica; with black bras under sheer white tops and a leather bustier here and there, Nicoll's woman wouldn't be out of place in a luxe fetish salon. Thankfully, it didn't distract from the sophistication of it all--there was nothing ostentatious or raunchy about his impeccable wide-legged trousers and voluminous, sensual pleats. Dresses with graphic, curve-reflecting lines were finished off with stiff, sculpted chiffon collars, giving an altogether soft collection a bit of sporty dimension. With sheer fabrics seemingly unavoidable on Spring 2011's runways, it was nice to see Nicoll give them new shape.

Thirty-plus years ago, on the landmark title track to Station to Station, Bowie heralded that "the European canon is here." On only day 3 of London Fashion Week, is it too soon to say that the Richard Nicoll canon is here? With such a stunning, forward-thinking collection, we think not.

Photos: Style.com