From the catwalk to the closet, Black designers are using fashion as an antidote to growing division

Honouring heritage … the fashion show at Westminster hall was a ‘profound exchange’ of cultural elements. Photograph: Shane Anthony Sinclair/Getty Images

London fashion week is always an exciting and vibrant time for the UK capital but this year, as far-right protesters sweep the streets, it felt more significant than ever as a visual counter against those images. And naturally, Black designers led the way in offering alternative visions of Britain..

I was lucky enough to attend the spring/summer 2026 show by Labrum, the label of British-Sierra Leonean designer Foday Dumbuya, which was titled Osmosis. As Dumbuya writes in an essay expanding on the show: “Cultural osmosis represents the profound exchange of cultural elements that occurs when diverse communities interact and inspire one another.”