Alexander McQueen live from Paris
2009.10.05
Ever the entertainer, fashion designer Alexander McQueen is preparing to wow a worldwide audience in their own homes.The designer is hoping that his spring fashion show, which will be streamed live from the Palais omnisports de Paris-Bercy on Oct. 6, will break new ground in the way the public sees and understands fashion “It’ll be like live theater at home”, said McQueen in an exclusive interview with Women’s Wear Daily. ”The audience at home is actually going to see more than the guests at the show. We’re filming from a load of different angles, and two big cameras will actually be a part of the performance”.
McQueen is collaborating with Nick Knight’s SHOWStudio.com, which will be streamed on
alexandermcqueenlive.showstudio.com, adding that he was getting sick of runway show snippets landing on YouTube. “I want to be in control of the illusion, the narrative, the outlet. I want to bring the show back to me”, he said.
This isnt the first fashion house to stream its show live: Burberry, Twenty8Twelve, Michael Kors and Isaac Mizrahi are among the brands that did live productions for spring. McQueen and Knight, however, are billing this project as something different a new take on fashion-as-entertainment.
Knight added fashion designers overall have begun to look at their runway shows in a different light. ”There is a sea change going on: Designers are seeing their shows as public as well as professional outings. They know the public is watching and pre-ordering the clothing on sites like Net-a-Porter.com, Yoox.com and Asos.com”, he said.
The famously private McQueen clearly loves engaging with his public over the Internet and has been embracing new media with a vengeance. The designer has been Twittering around the clock on twitter.com/mcqueenworld since the start of September. Via Twitter, he broke the news that his spring collection would be streamed live, and since then hes been twittering clues about show, including The land of the iguana!!! and The Creationist and Origin of Species Part 2.
“I’m doing it when I come home from a club, at 4 a.m. Im doing it if I see something on telly”, he said. “I love the fact that my messages are coming right from the horses mouth and I feel like Im speaking to a company of friends. I do it so much that someone needs to get me a gag”, McQueen said.
Over the next few seasons, McQueen hopes to create special capsule collections so the public can buy clothing right off his runway.
“This is the birth of a new dawn”, McQueen said. “There is no way back for me now. I am going to take you on journeys you’ve never dreamed were possible.”
Image from: www.alexandermcqueen.com
