Premiered this weekend, the new film showcases Sarah Burton’s exquisite Autumn/Winter 2020 menswear collection
At the beginning of this year, Alexander McQueen unveiled its Autumn/Winter 2020 menswear collection at Milan Men’s Fashion Week. The collection – which paid homage to British artist Henry Moore – was one of the standouts of the season, bringing together Moore’s beautiful but lesser-known drawings and an array of other British artistic references, including Art Nouveau and arts and crafts. The collection was particularly dazzling for its focus on craft, seeing Sarah Burton revive all-but-forgotten techniques of British craftsmanship – including a pounding technique from the 1700s called beetling – to couture-level luxury.
This weekend, the brand revealed an atmospheric short film to celebrate the release of the collection, directed by filmmaker Masha Vasyukova. Featured below, the film sees an eclectic cast of models – who starred in the brand’s January presentation, with accompanying images shot by Ethan James Green – roam the streets in Burton’s elegant designs.
The film showcases a variety of pieces from the collection, from otherworldly silver molten metal embroidery and brilliant red tailoring, to opulent silks, rebellious motocross jackets and beetled leather – the latter of which is created via a centuries-old technique originating in Northern Ireland, where fabric is repeatedly pounded to create a smooth finish.
Also in the film is a double breasted ivory wool thistle print tailored coat and trousers – thistle being the national flower of Scotland – which was hand-drawn in the Alexander McQueen studio and then crafted with silver hammered bullion embroidery, as well as a tailored Henry Moore wool silk ensemble, featuring the artist’s beautiful 1928 watercolour, chalk and pen work, Three-Quarter Figure. Though best-known for his semi-abstract monumental bronze sculptures, Burton was moved to focus on the artist’s dreamy drawings for their unusual “organic abstraction”.