GALLERY: Night of high-end fashion and electronic music at Cambridge Corn Exchange raises thousands for anti human trafficking charity A21

Hundreds of fashion-forward Cambridge University students filled the city’s Corn Exchange last night at an annual charity fashion show, this year raising £5,000 for anti human trafficking charity A21.

Cambs Times: Cambridge University Charity Fashion Show held at the Corn Exchange. Photos: Harry Rutter Cambridge University Charity Fashion Show held at the Corn Exchange. Photos: Harry Rutter (Image: Harry Rutter)

Dressed to fit the ‘black tie creative’ theme, glitzy dresses for girls and suave suits for guys were the outfits of choice, as a roped off catwalk sat in the centre of the crowd ready for the fashion show which was soundtracked by Kikomann on DJ duties.

Collections by Jungwoo Park, Charli Cohen’s stole the runway before Dirty South’s sportswear pieces and Wanbing Huang’s comparatively risqué and cheeky creations.

After the first catwalk show ended, French London-based producer and vocalist Coucou Chloe - who soundtracked Rihanna’s New York Fashion Week show – brought her bass-heavy electronic productions to life, casually strolling up and down the runway dressed in a Von Dutch top and snakeskin trousers.

It was a rare unexpected appearance having played in Milan the night before and flying to France today.

Picking up the pace to techno and then gunshot-like electronics, it’s safe to say the Cambridge Corn Exchange had never seen a performance like it.

After her live set, the DJ returned and after an electronic remix of Kelis’ ‘Milkshake’ everyone was up front dancing.

Hewi London, providing looks to D&G and Viktor x Rolfe; Vilhelm Lanai’s sleek black dresses, Suzy Harper’s feather fronted pieces, and Elle Rousseau’s graffiti, camouflage, tie die and ripped oversized anarchist collection made up the rest of the show which was completed by Alice Potter’s feathered, mermaid-like dresses.

“It’s really important to do things like this and express ourselves, especially for charity,” said one of the organisers, who gave a speech before the final musical performance, courtesy of African live dance music duo Afriquoi who brought bongo drums and tribal beats to the spacious venue.

Closing with a speech from one of the A21 charity representatives, who said “this fashion show is a statement for freedom”, the message of the evening was clear: creativity is crucial.

Visit www.a21.org for more information about the charity.

Cambs Times: Coucou Chloe | Cambridge University Charity Fashion Show held at the Corn Exchange. Photos: Harry Rutter Coucou Chloe | Cambridge University Charity Fashion Show held at the Corn Exchange. Photos: Harry Rutter (Image: Harry Rutter)