First She Gave London Chubby Hearts, Now Anya Hindmarch Is Introducing Chubby Clouds

When Anya Hindmarch announced that she would no longer be presenting her collections in line with the traditional London Fashion Week schedule, the industry sighed. Would there be no more human conveyor belts, fairground rides or giant dolls’ houses of presentations past?

Then in February, the designer oh-so-quietly suspended and squashed giant chubby heart balloons over and in London's famous landmarks. As her love letter to the capital and its residents she urged them to look up and around them. Giant inflatable emblems of happiness that floated from dawn until dusk on Valentine's Day were all the city needed to see London in a celebratory light again.

For her next trick, Hindmarch is continuing the “chubby” theme, and installing an experiential chubby cloud exhibition in Whitehall’s Banqueting House. Visitors will be able to climb on and sink into the world’s largest beanbag inspired by the cloud motif in her autumn/winter 2018 collection. And, just as Hindmarch’s hearts sparked a renewed appreciation of London’s landmarks, chubby heart beanbag dwellers will be able to observe the iconic Rubens ceiling – the largest surviving work by the artist still in its original location in Europe – above the giant squishy seat.

“We thrive on creativity and new challenges,” Hindmarch told Vogue of the concept. “Our chubby hearts over London campaign last season was a lovely way to engage the public beyond the runway. The chubby cloud continues this theme and is our first proper experiential event for the public during London Fashion Week, which coincides with the global launch of our autumn/winter 2018 chubby collection. We can’t wait to immerse people in this world, and hope that they will leave with big smiles on their faces.”

The three-day event from September 14th -16th will feature a series of talks and musical interludes. Bedtime stories will be read by Poppy Delevingne and Claudia Winkleman; Yana Peel will lead a discussion about body image in art with Marc Quinn and Victoria Sin; Radio 4’s Shipping Forecast will be read live to music and there will be guided morning meditations by Happy Not Perfect.

And what’s a giant beanbag without snacks? While on cloud Hindmarch guests will be able to enjoy chubby cloud-inspired cakes in the café, before visiting the pop-up shop, which will sell the new collection and products created exclusively for the event. Chubby cloud eye mask, anyone?