PowerPoint Exercise

Brooklyn Russell ۞ 3/1/19 ۞ EDT 180A

(An exercise in taking things too seriously)
 The story of McQueen is one of hope and
motivation, passion and art, pierced so
thoroughly with tragedy. Nine mournful
years after his suicide; his legacy
continues, reflected in the raging chaos
that is Paris Fashion Week 2019.
 In this presentation, you will learn about
one of McQueen’s outrageously
controversial shows in which he used his Photo Credit: Maia Valenzuela
art to provide a point of view that
assimilates both his personal viewpoint and
the viewpoint Irish and English history.
 the backdrop of his autumn/winter 1995-1996 collection

 18th century Scotland and England.

 The scots of the Highland lived in a rural society predominantly Gaelic as
compared to the Lowlands of Scotland which was more urbanized and a
culture more ingrained into the culture of the UK.
 The almost feudalistic society of Highlanders banded together under Charles
Edward, who in 1745 led the fifth Jacobite Rebellion to try to reclaim the
British Throne.
 Initial success was followed by a crushing defeat of the Scots during the Battle at
Culloden in 1746 in which thousands of Highlanders were murdered.
 the backdrop of his autumn/winter 1995-1996 collection

 The following weeks and even months after the Battle at Culloden, the
victorious British government hunted and killed Highlanders, in order to
destroy their system of clans.
 The British government also imposed laws that restricted Gaelic culture,
banning cultural icons such as bagpipe music and clan tartans (plaid textile
designs).
 This forced removal of Highlanders by the British government became known
as the Highland Clearances
 The land in which the Scots were forcibly removed from, then was sold to sheep
farmers in an attempt by the landholders to replace the feudalist like system with
a capitalist one.
 McQueen’s A/W ‘95-’96 collection, “Highland Rape”

This historical context and his own Scottish heritage led Alexander McQueen to
design and produce a fashion show that marked the sharp incline of his
international fame. The Autumn/Winter collection 1995-1996 was called The
Highland Rape, and featured pieces with recurring designs that included:
Photo Credit: Maia Valenzuela
 Dark makeup, an almost bruised look upon his models face and body
 Tartan
 Torn dresses, purposefully ripped in places around the models breasts and
groins
 Shocking, even crude, design work that left critics with sensationalized reviews of
the fashion show

Photo Credit: Wikipedia Commons

 & within the ever critical press

 The back lash against this pivotal collection was immediate and
overwhelming, making it the most controversial show of McQueen’s
career as a fashion designer.
 Media sensationalized the collection, claiming it to be degrading to
women, even going so far as to say that McQueen was promoting and
romanticizing the rape of women. A “misogynist” they called him.
 It wasn’t until multiple interviews with McQueen did his vision for
the collection came into light
 The collection was a physical incarnation of the pervasion against his
culture by the British government. It was entirely symbolic of the
extremity of nationalism that ends in ripping national identities from
the Scots leaving them, like the models with torn gowns, vulnerable.
Photo Credit: Maia Valenzuela
 In regards to Alexander McQueen and the Highland Rape Collection

 More than a fashion designer, Alexander

McQueen was a visionary, pioneer, and a lasting
influence in the global fashion industry. A
career cut short by his tragic suicide, McQueen
was bolstered to international success for his
ability to use clothes as a medium in delivering
his point of view in a way regarded almost as
theatrical. Using his platform, the
Autumn/Winter collection of ‘95-’96 called
“Highland Rape,” was so much more than a
fashion show. It was an unabashed notion
pointing towards McQueen’s role as an artist
true to his visions and a national activist.
Photo Credit: Maia Valenzuela
 my resources for historical context and for the included (creative commons) photos

 https://www.flickr.com/photos/maiabee/5707511649/in/photostream/
 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_Stewart_tartan.png
 http://stylejourno.blogspot.com/2013/11/highland-rape.html
 https://www.britannica.com/topic/Highland-Clearances
 https://www.flickr.com/photos/maiabee/5706813015/in/album-
72157626565830079/
 https://www.flickr.com/photos/maiabee/5706812893/in/album-
72157626565830079/