Visible! 2013 at the Book Club – preview

Hats off: Designer Bidyut Das

Christian Dior once said that “without hats, we would have no civilisation,” a remark of which Bidyut Das would surely approve. Arriving in England from North East India at the tender age of twelve, he went on to study fashion at Central St Martins and the Royal College. Soon after his graduation he became hot property, with his wares appearing at Liberty, le Bon Marché and Topshop.

Now, in an exhibition at the Book Club in Shoreditch, hat designer Das will be celebrating his thoroughly modern take on the gentleman’s hats of the 1920s – the trilby, pork pie and baker boy caps – using a series of installations and photography by Giacomo Favilla, Liat Chen and Adi Krauss.

One of the installations will be a hat display suspended from the ceiling meant to depict the wave of freedom and progress that the 1920s brought to Britain.

Das was described by the Guardian as “one of the most promising designers of the graduates of his class”. Speaking about his educational background and attitude towards London, he said: “Central St Martins is a magnet for all the creative minds who want to express themselves and London as a city also provides that opportunity.

“Here students can be eccentric in their work and attitude and no one will ask questions because that’s the creative nature of London culture.”

Visible! 2013 is at The Book Club 100 Leonard Street, EC2A 4RH until 16 February 2014.