Emanciapating 
Essex

             

Leoapard, lace and lip liner aside,
Joshua Cornwell’s graduate collection unravels the intimacy 
encompassed within these stereotypes. 

Image above Photography Credit: Jake Evans
Words by Ava Lenihan and Olivia Ascough  

Joshua Cornwell, Photography: Ava Lenihan

Essex. The home county in Southeast England has earned an infamous reputation, bringing a cacophony of white stilettos, fake tan and vajazzles to mind. Yet for Central Saint Martins Womenswear student Joshua Cornwell, Essex is a “county of contradictions” in his words, uncovering the nuance encompassed within these stereotypes through his BA graduate collection. ‘It's kind of about looking at it from a perspective of someone that's not in it but desires to be,’ Cornwell confesses in the library, between flicking through the pages of his portfolio.

“A lot of my projects take place initially on the landing of my family home. And that context in itself is quite interesting to explore glamour. When my dad's downstairs looking up like, ‘Why have you got your hair all done like this?’

Cornwell grew up in rural Braintree, removed from the flashy likes of Brentwood and Billericay commonly associated with the county. Observing as an outsider, his collection bridges extremes of hyper-glamour and mundanity, intertwined with Cornwell’s experience. growing up queer. Examining safe spaces, from digging around in his mum’s makeup drawer to playing with Bratz dolls as a child, Cornwell expresses an innocence that ‘isn’t touched by the outside world’, playing with the idea of ‘when you choose to reveal the glamour’.

Joshua’s BA Graduate Collection, Photography:
Jake Evans

Desiring to reconnect with his upbringing, Cornwell realised the ‘worlds apart’ disassociation between his life then and now, urged to convey a meaningful understanding of femininity through his work. Growing up, he was surrounded by realisations of the archetypal ‘Essex Girl’, from his mum, who recoils at the idea of being seen as tacky, to his nan, who ‘would wake up extra early to put a face of makeup on and then go back to bed’. Catching up with childhood friend Hannah, he gained an intimate understanding of the ‘Essex Girl’ ‘removed from the psychology of dressing for men’, sharing stories of the fake tan stains marking her bedsheets or the remaining imprints of strappy heels after a night out on the town. Amplifying these ideas ‘for the girls, gays, and theys’, Cornwell’s collection culminates in an ‘interaction with beauty, growing up, and understanding yourself.’

Viewing sustainability as a ‘duty’, Cornwell utilises deadstock fabrics where possible, combined with intricate pattern cutting techniques to remove wastage. Upcycled pattern paper rolls and recycled plastic will be reformed into ultra-sized 3D-printed makeup palettes and mascara wands with the assistance of his mechanical engineer brother, spanning the collection to sculpture. This consciousness counters the subject matter of Cornwell’s collection, dismantling how we ‘perceive people that wear something that looks mass-produced’.



Creating contradictions of fit, Cornwell opposes ‘high culture’ dressmaking practices with inarguably Essex waists cinched with belts and lustrous leopard print sequin degradé surfaces. Through a hands-on design process of draping on the stand and photographing different ensembles on his body, Cornwell envisioned exaggerated corsetry to mimic the accentuated hips and joints of a Bratz doll, delicately casting these shapes with mesh.

“I came from a small town in Essex, and all of a sudden I was in Paris, touching the clothing.”

Honing haute couture during an internship at Maison Margiela in Paris for the first half of last year, Cornwell learnt to find beauty in bad taste and worked on archiving the brand’s iconic 2024 Artisanal Collection. Challenged to revaluate his perceptions of what is or is not culturally valuable, Cornwell applied this to the polarising representations of Essex dissected in his collection. Even Demna, creative director of Balenciaga, hailing from post-Soviet Georgia, worlds away from the glitz and glam of Essex, understands its significance. The ‘Essex Bag’ and ‘Essex Boots’ were released as part of their AW24 collection, coincidentally crossing over with Cornwell’s leather goods internship at the brand.

Joshua’s BA Graduate Collection, Photography:
Jake Evans

symbol of this within Cornwell’s collection, representing a desire to fit in ‘both physically and metaphorically’, communicating the gesture of adjusting yourself and a sense of discomfort, with the dress ultimately becoming ‘a thing in itself’.

Cornwell experienced this vulnerability directly; his role reversed when given the opportunity to walk in Rick Owens SS25 presentation. He recalled the awkwardness felt in his first foray into modelling, “Oh, how do I feel in this room? And I literally had to strip down to boxers in front of everyone.”

Manifesting his move to London, ‘It was always the goal,’ Cornwell confesses his childhood bedroom was plastered with a mural of the city’s skyline and red bus bedsheets. Drawn to the sense of escape about the capital, he reflects on the shock upon arrival, throughout his degree undergoing the transformative process of becoming an adult in the city. ‘But even here, I feel like a bit of an outsider,’ Cornwell surmises, concluding he’s a ‘homebody’ at heart.

But what’s next for Cornwell? ‘A Master’s is a question mark,’ he ponders, eager to work within the industry to build upon his knowledge and then ‘unlearn this’ through further study.

Weighing up the financial viability of starting his own label, ‘I’m still in the process of figuring that out,’ Cornwell faces widespread economic instability affecting many young designers today, focusing foremost on developing his skill set.

Joshua’s BA Graduate Collection, Photography:
Jake Evans

Conveying an intimate exploration of queer identity, Cornwell projects how the women performing instrumental roles within his life have informed him. Creating a space when he felt other to the dichotomies of ‘Essex Girl’ or ‘Old Cockney’, Cornwell subverts these performances of gender in a celebration of his culture.