When the new creative director of Alexander McQueen, Sean McGirrpresented his first vision for the brand on the catwalk, the reaction of the audience was quite negative. Perhaps this was because the collection was decidedly impractical and sometimes funnyalthough the silhouettes are “extraordinary” – in retrospect, many have learned to wear the metallic mini dress in brat green – or maybe because some on social media went so far as to claim that the creative director was a “mediocre” Designer versus founding genius. However, it must also be said that a position such as that of artistic director of McQueen means facing an extremely loyal fan base to your idol. Despite the initial criticism, several months after his debut on the catwalk at the helm of the brand, Sean McGirr seems to have hit the mark with a pair of shoes that Hoof boots (which we could also call clogs in Italian, but we will adapt to the trend). The boots designed by McGirr for McQueen FW24 are made of pony hair and decorated with a real horseshoe under the sole and a enamelled hoof at the top, with the all-black version pushing the boundaries of eccentricity by adding a thick ponytail on the heel. From the thick platform to the choice of materials, every element of the footwear is reminiscent of horse legs, so much so that some fashion magazines have dared to associate the style with the “horse girl” trend. If only they had remembered shows like It’s a jungle out there or Wild beautyMcQueen’s passion for dramatic looks, shoes like the Armadillo and the designer’s obsession with the animalistic. Forget TikTok trends.
“It’s a jungle out there,” the criticism of the press and the fashion industry
When Alexander McQueen presented It’s a jungle out there for the FW97 collection of his eponymous brand, he had just started working as artistic director for the haute couture house Givenchyalready owned by the conglomerate LVMHBefore the famous musical chairs among creative directors and the moves of CEOs and designers were a regular part of the gossip, McQueen railed against the system – as he always liked to do. While he was Documentary about gazellesThe designer found a rather amusing analogy between the fate of the poor animal and his entry into the Givenchy studio: “I watched these gazelles being eaten by lions and hyenas and thought: ‘That’s me!’ There’s always someone after me and if I get caught they’ll pull me down. Fashion is a jungle full of nasty, bitchy hyenas.”reports one of his most famous quotes. One of the most spectacular shows in fashion history, It’s a jungle out there remains unforgettable for the make-up of the models, with tousled hair and thick eyeliner, for the backdrop, which included Ovens and broken machines (which by the way Caught fire during the event), but above all for the majesty of the collection, which consists of 75 looks. From blazers with pointed shoulders reminiscent of gazelle shoulder blades, long horns that adorned the jackets, extra-tight black leather suits, metal inserts on brown suede and jewelry that recalled the style codes of South African cultures, the Hoof Shoes made their debut, in this case in a “gazelle” version, both in color and silhouette, more subdued and refined than McGirr’s “horses”. Could it be that the new creative director of the most controversial house of all time wanted to pay homage to the founder, while and at the same time criticize the fashion industry? To answer the question, we find the right words in two more of Lee McQueen’s most famous quotes: “Fashion should be a form of escape, not a form of imprisonment” “Fashion should be a form of escape from reality, not a form of imprisonment”And “I want people to be afraid of the women I dress.”
Over the years, both after It’s a jungle out there and even before that, several designers have been inspired by the animal world to design new shoes, from the tabi by Margiela (which are actually mainly inspired by Japanese culture) to the lace-up shoes with woven pattern by JW Anderson created for FW23. Even Sarah Burtonduring her tenure as artistic director of McQueen, and although in a less dramatic way, she reintroduced the aesthetic code introduced by the designer on the catwalk. For FW12, the follower of fashion’s enfant terrible designed leather and fur ankle boots with metallic soles and platforms almost identical to the silhouette presented by McGirr last spring. Burton’s collection this year was much softer and more delicate compared to that of the Irish designer, with lace and feather boas, hourglass coats with metallic inserts, white and pink tulle, for a show that, as she herself explained backstage, aimed to “a beautiful future, positivity and optimism.” Judging by the Hoof Shoes and McGirr’s first collection for McQueen, the designer seems to have preferred to stay in the realm of realism for his debut, even if it seems like fear is the only real thing in the world right now.
