J.W Anderson was born in Northern Ireland in 1984. He originally pursued a career in acting but it was whilst studying drama that he found himself infatuated by the stage costume. This was the pivotal moment that brought him to the prestigious London College of Fashion to feed his infatuation of fashion design

In the September of that year, On|Off hosted an exhibition and catwalk celebrating the ‘5o years of Italian Vogue’ at the Royal Academy of Arts of which Anderson was included. His Autumn/ Winter 2008 collection, inspired by the historical Rasputin acuminated in another stand-out visionary collection. These two collections are what really put the name ‘J.W. Anderson’ on the fashion map. In particular, his Spring/Summer collection in 2009 was one of the most highly anticipated of recent times and has become a fixture at the prestigious MAN showcase at London Fashion Week.

His first womenswear capsule collection launched in 2010 for Autumn/Winter which mirrored his menswear line. He has continued to keep people guessing throughout his work. Anderson describes his designs as: ‘Combining sinister phenomena with a love of mystical characters in history and literature, the intensely dramatic aesthetics of J.W. Anderson have made him one of the most intriguing menswear designers in current British fashion.’

His designs in general speak of things that can be borrowed from a man to a woman and from a woman to a man and this creates the ethos from which he creates. In terms of inspiration, different from movements with youth subcultures to the J.W Anderson brand is key, “You need to know what is happening in the world to be able to evoke a reaction in garment format.”