Alexander McQueen, the Autumn Winter 2020 Menswear Collection revealed in Milan.
Inspiration
Northern landscapes. The windswept earth stripped bare: flint, rock, coarse earth and thistles. Art nouveau and arts and crafts: the restrained elegance of modernism. The organic abstraction of Henry Moore’s drawings. The dialogue between Alexander McQueen menswear and womenswear continues: heritage tailoring, uniform, hybrids and garment beetling.
Collection
Double-breasted overcoats and tailored suits are precision cut with sharp darted panels in flint grey and coal black Donegal tweeds, inspired by minerals, rocks and stones. Coats and jackets in grey sharkskin mohair and black wool are spliced and slashed, echoing the lines of military harnessing. Panels from classic military coats are cut into signature tailoring and camel overcoats. Coats and jackets are pieced and patched in black wool and camel. An inky black thistle, hand-drawn in the Alexander McQueen studio, is printed then over embroidered in gold and silver bullion thread on an ivory wool jacket and coat and a cotton poplin shirt. A coat is bonded in mineral yellow suede. A leather coat is garment beetled, pounded by specially created wooden beams for over four hours by William Clark, the last remaining practitioner of this century-old technique in Ireland.
This piece references the beetled Irish linen of that same provenance in the Alexander McQueen Spring/Summer 2020 womenswear collection.
Oversized knits in wool and mohair feature abstract markmaking, sculptural skulls, and an exploded Argyle-flag motif. Artists’ overalls in stone and white are printed with oversized, hand-drawn skulls and embroidered with silver and gold bullion thread. Leather motorcross jackets and trousers have contrast quilted panelling. Sharp, signature tailoring comes in double-duchess satin, in shades of deep orange and carnelian red and are worn with leather military harnessing. Wool silk suits and coats are printed with an engineered artwork of Henry Moore, Three-Quarter Figure 1928, reproduced courtesy of the Henry Moore Foundation. A trompe l’oeil double-revers tuxedo jacket is worn over tuxedo trousers. A jet black art nouveau engineered thistle and a molten metal ore harness in gold and silver bullion thread are worn with black duchess satin trousers. Hybrid jackets and coats are cut in ivory and black wool silk and silver and gold metallic moiré. Tailored evening jackets and overcoats gleam with abstract markmaking, molten metal ores and engineered art nouveau iris silver bullion embroidery.
Fabric
Donegal tweed, sharkskin mohair, wool serge, Barathea wool, cotton canvas, cotton gabardine, wool gabardine, suede, leather, camel, mohair, duchess satin, wool silk, wool silk jacquard, metallic satin-backed moiré.
Colour
Mineral yellow, carnelian red, deep orange, gold, silver, camel, stone, charcoal, ivory, black.
Shoes
Tread boots with metal toe-caps in black and burgundy.
Jewellery
Metal quartz-shaped charms are cast from minerals and suspended from chains; each is unique. Double rings are set with metal gemstones. Earrings – from organically shaped bars to multi-hoop cuffs – reference the treasures buried beneath the earth. Handcut siamite appears as pendants, set into rings and suspended from ear-cuffs.
Credits: © Ethan James Green
© Courtesy of Alexander McQueen Pr
