Alexander McQueen (British, 1969–2010)
Coat
Eshu, autumn/winter 2000–2001
Black synthetic hair
Courtesy of Alexander McQueen
Photograph © Sølve Sundsbø / Art + Commerce

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Andrew Bolton: The runway show for Eshu emphasized the raw power of the clothes.

Sam Gainsbury: Sometimes it wasn’t as complicated as a big special effects and a finale. And I think what Lee felt was that he had found this big empty location that was very raw; the collection was very raw.

We built a pathway down from the top of the building to the bottom of the building that the models had to walk down. And we mic’ed up their feet so you could hear them walking and coming.

And I think that Lee felt that it was enough.

Alexander McQueen (British, 1969–2010)
Dress
Eshu, autumn/winter 2000–2001
Yellow glass beads and brown horsehair
Courtesy of Alexander McQueen
Photograph © Sølve Sundsbø / Art + Commerce

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Andrew Bolton: The 2001 collection Eshu was inspired by the Yoruba people of West Africa, mixing tribal details with luxurious fabrics. This dress, embroidered with yellow glass beads interwoven with horsehair, is a tour de force of the couture. McQueen contrasts the sophistication of the beading with the rawness of the hair. Sarah Jessica Parker:

Sarah Jessica Parker: I described his clothes once—and I hope this isn’t offensive—but they were like sometimes ugly-beautiful. You couldn’t just call them “beautiful” because it seems like saying, “It’s fine. You know, the dinner was fine. You know, the clothing was lovely. They were lovely.”

But I think it’s this sort of raw sex of his clothes with the very unusual androgyny, an attempt at that at the same time. He kind of married these opposites—these sort of contrasting ideas—you know. A very high neck, which is very, very hard to wear. It’s not particularly sexy. But because the fabric was so close to the body, everything hugged in a really amazing way. You would tend to consider a high neck where you mightn’t with anybody else’s, because it still felt really sexy.

“[I try to] push the silhouette. To change the silhouette is to change the thinking of how we look. What I do is look at ancient African tribes, and the way they dress. The rituals of how they dress. . . . There’s a lot of tribalism in the collections.”

Purple Fashion, Issue 7, Summer 2007

Alexander McQueen (British, 1969–2010)
Ensemble
Eshu, autumn/winter 2000–2001
Dress of beige leather; crinoline of metal wire
Courtesy of Alexander McQueen
Photograph © Sølve Sundsbø / Art + Commerce

In McQueen’s Words

“I like things to be modern and still have a bit of tradition.”

Harper’s Bazaar, April 2003

“I believe in history.”

British Vogue, October 2002