Having gained a reputation as one of fashion’s great intellectuals, Hussein Chalayan is known for making more than just pretty clothing. His presentations are thematically provocative and sensitive to the physical and sensual aspect of the collection.

Born in Cyprus, Hussein Chalayan moved to London to study at Central Saint Martin’s in the early 1990s. His degree collection was immediately bought by Browns, which launched Chalayan as a significant new fashion force. The following year his label was launched and he was named British Designer of the year in 1999 and 2000. He moved his internationally lauded seasonal show from London to Paris in 2002. The ready-to-wear collection is regularly featured in top fashion magazines and international press and is consistently favoured by actresses, artists, musicians and tastemakers alike.

Chalayan uses film, installations and sculptural forms to explore perception and the realities of modern life, with particular focus on cultural identity, migration, anthropology, technology, nature and genetics. He lectures regularly about his work and has exhibited in museums worldwide including the V & A in London and The Metropolitan Museum of Art and MOMA in New York. Chalayan has also directed several short films and represented Turkey at the 2005 Venice Biennale with Absent Presence.

Known for making guest appearances at his own presentations, Chalayan surprised his Spring Summer 2012 audience by disguising himself as a waiter serving the models flutes of champagne. With his endless appetite for exploration of identity, his work is constantly asks us to re-evaluate how we see ourselves, both inside and out.