Apocalypse: Pam Hogg SS24

Words: Eerie Rose Photography: Jeanie Jean

For SS24, the notorious and subversive powerhouse that is Pam Hogg did not fail to bring the provocative to the runway, as we have come to expect from the Scottish designer. Words like ‘apocalypse’, ‘reckoning,’ ‘retribution’ and ‘judgement day’ appeared onscreen alongside illustrations of medieval orthopaedic gloves, looming behind the models who paced the catwalk in sharp red, white and black. Silhouettes were a mixture of fetish and medical, arguably somewhat overlapping the two, vintage nurse uniforms and medical crosses juxtaposed with symbols of crucifixes, so similar and yet entirely opposed - the spiritual vs the scientific; the eerily ritualistic presentation reminiscent of both the precise routine of surgery and the reverent ceremony of mass or religious service. I think of nurses walking through hospital corridors and devout churchgoers pacing the nave for communion, both simultaneously reflected on the runway.

The collection is intended as a tribute to the late Sinead O’Connor, described by Hogg as an ‘eternal muse.’ Conjuring up images of O’Connor as a modern day Joan of Arc, her inspiration was palpable through the exploration of the theme ‘apocalypse,’ presenting thoughts on the current state of the world. How we treat the othered, the outsider, the underground (all things which Hogg is more than familiar with) is potentially embodied by these harsh, futuristic, ecclesiastical nurses, striding forwards ready to care for, or control. The mood was ominous, foreboding - it felt like the reckoning was at hand, and about to begin. Expecting the worst, or characters darker still to spill from the depths of Hogg’s imagination, the crescendo of the show took the audience by surprise with an extraordinary parade of gowns in light flowing fabrics and bright colours. Representing the ‘return of the Goddess’ and the end of conflict, the finale is a real tribute to the memory of Sinead O’Connor, and the multitudes of her spirit and softness as well as her strength and defiance.