Jonathan Anderson is guaranteed to bring levity and subversion to his collections. The overarching theme for JW Anderson’s Fall/Winter 2024, shown in Milan yesterday morning, was Stanley Kubrick’s lush (and final) film Eyes Wide Shut (he died of a heart attack shortly after its release). Complete with floral appliques, kaleidoscopic textiles, loose silhouettes, rich colours and quintessential tailoring, the collection reified Anderson’s referential approach to fashion.

Images on the JW Anderson Instagram, prior to the show, teased an image of a poinsettia, followed by the rhetorical, rather abstract question, ‘Who is the painter?’ We soon found out that the painter was indeed Christiane Kubrick, Stanley Kubrik’s long-time collaborator and widow. While she never acted in his films, her many paintings furnished the sets for his psychologically tormented characters and the ensuing saturnalia of their narratives.

Kubrik’s paintings, which meld the domestic, romantic and uncanny, were printed directly onto JW Anderson tops, dresses and jumpers. Spliced and blurred, the images mimicked the frames of beloved and cherished cinema.

Most of the JW Anderson garments had a red base colour that, along with an electric blue, was reminiscent of the danger sustained in Kubrik’s films. There were also several dresses with figurative and floral studies. Some even featured an enlarged painting of Polly, Kubrik’s dear tortoiseshell cat.

Knit pieces, incorporating a variation of the quarter-zip top and the henley, formed the foundation of the Fall/Winter silhouettes. Other noteworthy looks included frilled shorts paired with sheer stockings, an unbuttoned grandpa shirt with multiple sleeves, and seamless tunic dresses. There was also a fantastic pair of grey wool breeches with minty satin edging, conjuring images of the Elizabethan or Renaissance periods.

Tailored oversized blazers, wide cargo trousers, Harrington and bomber jackets proved to be an interesting streetwear proposition and an unexpected departure for the British designer, who continues to impress us with his conceptualism.