Dries Van Noten A/W11 Womenswear

For his autumn/winter collection, Belgian designer Dries Van Noten cited two main references: David Bowie and Sergei Diaghile's The Ballets Russes. Disparate at first mention, they actually have numerous aesthetic similarities; zigzags, elegance, feminine silhouettes and show stopping sparkle. It was also the combination of two very different starting points that influenced the designs.

Mr Bowie's impact was clear. His Heroes track was remixed for the show by 2manydjs. His trademark colour palette (black and white with a flash of orange) was used throughout, as were the zigzags, central to the look of his flamboyant, androgynous alter ego "Ziggy Stardust" which debuted in 1972. The album Heroes was released in 1977 and was the second installment of his Berlin Trilogy with Brian Eno. It evinced the zeitgeist of the Cold War, symbolised by the divided city of Berlin. Bowie paid tribute to his Krautrock influences: the title is a nod to the track Hero on the album NEU! '75 by the German band Neu! and the cover iconic shot was inspired by German artist Erich Heckel's Roquairol. The album and single were regarded as highly passionate and positive artistic statements; backstage, Van Noten said he felt just as passionate about his collection. The influence of The Ballet Russes and its principal dancer Vaslav Nijinsky, is less obvious than that of Bowie, but on closer inspection can be found in silhouette and embellishment. The company, who performed internationally between 1909 and 1929, collaborated with creatives including Pablo Picasso and Chanel and still has resonance to this day.

Since his debut in the 1985, Van Noten's appeal is his dedication to creating fabric and prints, and his knack of layering 'ideas'. This season was one of the strongest demonstrations of how he has honed those skills over the past decade. There were numerous examples of interesting combinations; the black leather ankle boots with orange Perspex heels, snakeskin toes, worn with zebra print socks is just one. There were countless materials and textures at work – leather, fur, marbled tweed, patchwork silks, brocade, python, knit and jacquards. And 'evening' embellishments on 'daywear' shapes. There were moments that would even pique the interest of a stalwart minimalist. Van Noten said the collection was intended for a "Liberal woman", one who is not afraid of putting things together.

The prints this season came in a mixture of styles: graphic abstractions, Chinoiserie and delicate bonsai-inspired designs. The latter appeared on a blazer, a tunic, A-line skirts and wide-legged trousers in black and burnt orange. Bonsai is a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers and dates back over a thousand years. The purposes of bonsai are primarily contemplation (for the viewer) and the pleasant exercise of effort and ingenuity (for the grower). There was also a reference to other Japanese plant life in the panels of silk bearing abstract blossom prints.

The next Fashion Equation will be published in two weeks.

Laura Bradley is the Commissioning Editor of AnOther and published her first series of Fashion Equations in May 2008. Tom Baxter is an illustrator currently living and working in London.