Lazy Oaf: Batman collection launch party

14^th July 2012

14 July 2012

To coincide with the imminent release of The Dark Night Rises, the East London clothing label Lazy Oaf has teamed up with Warner Bros Consumer Products to create a Batman-themed capsule men’s and women’s collection.

The collection was shown off last night at its launch party held at Electricity Showroom, near Hoxton Square. The party was downstairs, hidden away from the dreadful rain outside – with balloons, popcorn and a multi-coloured, light-up disco floor it was childlike fun. The photobooth attracted lots of silliness with Batman and Catwoman masks for people to dress up in.

Music was provided by post-grunge punk band Throwing Up who started the set with a joke (probably happens every time): “Hello, we’re Throwing Up.” It was reminiscent of the scene from the film 10 Things I Hate About You, when band Letters to Cleo play on top of the school. As the rattling guitar and emotive vocals blasted out around the room, the line of models began to appear from the other side of the dance floor.

The girls strutted across the disco tiles in skin-tight leggings and crop tops blazoned with vintage 60s-era Batman iconography. The collection looked retro yet fresh with a very sexy twist. The womenswear used body-con dresses and bodysuits with some sheer fabrics mixed in for texture and to add a bit of naughtiness.

The menswear was cool and neat, comprising of cotton, Hawaiian-style shirts – replacing palm trees and pineapples for the timeless Batman logo. There were also t-shirts and rucksacks covered in Batman logos and character drawings, looking very much what boys would have worn as children in the 90s. The collection, although playfully nostalgic for fun times of childhood in the 90s, took the best bits of the period to make the collection exciting and new, with a definite nod to the seductive Catwoman silhouette and every boy’s dream to be a super hero.

A truly fun and childlike collection which captures the feeling of a child discovering Batman and superheroes for the first time, bringing the old-school artwork into the 21^st century and getting those iconic images to reach a wider audience.

Rebecca Saunders

Photos: Rebecca Saunders