Art

Matty Bovan’s Vibrant Maximalism Unravels at Now Gallery in London

A multi-sensory experience that invites you to re-examine your views on art and fashion.

NOW Gallery has revealed a new site-specific participatory installation exploring Matty Bovan’s dynamic body of work. The York-based designer was granted the opportunity to create his own world within the multi-faceted gallery expanse after receiving the NOW Gallery’s 2022 Fashion Commission. Dubbed “Ribbons,” the immersive experience spotlights Bovan’s textile-rich designs. For the special commission, the creative has installed a ceiling-high, hand-knitted jumper that showcases his meticulous process of thinking and making.

The multi-sensory experience invites guests into a tent-like structure to relax on handmade rugs while watching an experimental film that narrates the making of the jumper. The space intends for guests to re-examine their own views on art, fashion and craftsmanship whilst getting lost in Bovan’s irreverent and fascinating world. To accompany the occasion, the designer has created a limited-edition merchandise range that visitors can purchase exclusively in the space.

The exhibit follows his celebrated Spring/Summer 2023 runway collection, which closed Milan Fashion Week with a fresh perspective on Italian luxury, characterized by sculptural knits, textures and wild maximalism. Since graduating from Central Saint Martins in 2015 with an MA in Fashion Knitwear, Bovan embarked on a creative journey that earned him the L’Oréal Professionnel Creative Award. Moreover, after winning the coveted LVMH Graduate Prize in 2015, the designer ventured to work with Marc Jacobs and cult-loved label Miu Miu.

As per the designer, the exhibition represents another side of his fascinating world, a more intimate and special place. “I’m ready to invite people into a multisensory world of epic scale. My grandma taught me to knit at age 11, and I have never looked back. Passing down skills and exciting people about craft is a central focus of my work. Ribbon is usually used as a trim or flourish in fashion and craft; here I am taking the idea of a small-scale, somewhat apologetic trim and blowing it up with full brute force of energy and hardcore craft!”

Ribbons will be available to visit from November 30 until March 5 next year.

NOW Gallery
The Gateway Pavilions
Peninsula Square
Soames Walk
London
SE10 0SQ