So: Why art? Why now? Beatrice Behlen, fashion curator at the Museum of London, believes it’s partly to do with the blurring boundaries between art forms. “Fashion has become more ravenous in absorbing new concepts and styles while designers, such as Tom Ford, are now engaged in several creative areas,” she says.
Petersson, meanwhile, reckons the rise of “art garments” is down to status, a longstanding notion in both the art and fashion worlds. “Wearing art is a way of showing that you’re in the know.” Perhaps it’s little surprise, then, that in another world where one-upmanship rules—Instagram, people—brands working closely with art are thriving.