How do you get suave mid-century Soho boys marching through Jardin du Luxembourg in the middle of Paris? Well, just call Sarah Burton. Her vision of Alexander McQueen Spring/ Summer 2019 was just that – a set of perfectly tailored-up boys, oozing subtle femininity and a laissez-faire attitude. Yes, the word dandy might be totally passé, but these looks embodied the essence of Francis Bacon and John Deakin, both dandies in their own rights. But it wasn’t the artist’s style that the collection represented. One of the models even sashayed down the catwalk actual canvas, torso out, covered in vivid brush strokes like a human version of Bacon’s palette circa Portrait of George Dyer Talking. Towards the end of the collection, the prim and proper silhouettes loosened up and morphed into artist in-studio uniforms. Boiler suits, workwear, leather – the bad boys of Soho came to play. The final section, however, brought it back to the McQueen man we all know and love. Two-toned, precisely-cut jackets with slashed tuxedo-stripe trousers were definitely one of the best examples of tailoring we have seen this season. Quietly loud or loudly quiet? This collection made an impact without having to shout from the top of the lungs, just another nod to Burton’s wildly creative mind and a unique POV. All we need is a timewarp to transport ourselves to Sarah Burton’s Soho.
Photographs by Jason Lloyd-Evans
