This season, the inimitable Hector Maclean tells a story of BASTARD ARISTOCRATS, exploring modern society’s mixed backgrounds, and based on one of Hector’s forebears who was the bastard child of King James II. From a once wealthy English family fallen from grace and society, Maclean will explore the captivating tension between punk and elegance, trash and treasure, poor and posh.
The semi-royal British designer is bastard aristocratic and fascinated by today’s society’s heritage concoction, “the multicultural acceptance of being British and part of this beautiful crazy island, home to some of the globe’s best inventors”. Maclean’s AW25 collection will be a celebration of Britain and royal heritage, channeling the idea of the Prince and the Pauper.
TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR LATEST COLLECTION BASTARD ARISTOCRATS AND YOUR OWN BACKGROUND THAT INSPIRED IT?
“The collection BASTARD ARISTOCRATS is based on myself and my ancestor Lady Bellasis who had an affair with King James II and had an heir that was acknowledged by the royal family. I didn’t actually find out until not that long ago! The idea is that we can all come from royalty; that royalty is for everyone; we don’t know people’s backgrounds and heritage; we all come from ancestors, and history doesn’t define the individuals that we are.”
HOW DID THESE THEMES AND INFLUENCES MANIFEST THEMSELVES IN THE STUNNING PIECES WE SAW ON THE RUNWAY?
“BASTARD ARISTOCRATS is vastly different from former collections as it’s a lot more personal and way more camp than I have ever gone in a previous season… normally I try and do quite high fashion pieces and experimental shapes; this season we are doing interesting silhouettes, but it’s a lot more about embellishment. And taking a moment for the pieces with Union Jacks *laughs*… it’s so hammy! I tried to do it in such an elegant way, but there’s been a deep fear within me of Oh gosh, is this too much… The colour palette, shapes and association worried me, but I’m really excited about what they’ve transformed into.”
WHAT EXCITES YOU ABOUT THE FASHION WORLD RIGHT NOW?
“I’m really enjoying the massive silhouette cuts and drapes that we’re seeing more of within our industry. Also of course John Galliano’s comeback with his inaugural haute couture collection for Maison Margiela excites me, and that idea of romance returning to fashion – there’s this fight between quiet luxury and extravagance, and from an extravagance perspective I so hope we win *laughs*. What’s also exhilarating is the heightened sustainability practices we’re witnessing in our industry!”
DO YOU HAVE A MUSE? AND CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT THIS IDEA OF HAVING A FEMALE PROTAGONIST IN YOUR WORK?
“I have many muses, one being my grandmother, of course, my sister, my mother and my ancestor Lady Bellasis, as well as the likes of Virginia Woolf and Tilda Swinton who has always been a huge influence – generally inspiring female figures, hence me referring to Christina Rossetti in previous collections. There’s something insanely wonderful about women, who drive me to create, and that’s the ethos of it all. I love women, I respect women, and have such admiration. I’m trying to uplift intelligent women and make idols of female figures who have said something and said something powerful. My female protagonist is bolshy, she’s strong and immensely smart, yet playful, silly and ridiculous. One of my main muses is named Rose – I grew up with her, she went to Cambridge and now works in banking; she is simply the most intelligent woman but dances like a complete freak and has always been such an inspiration to me. I’m proud of my muses being themselves.”
SUSTAINABILITY SEEMS TO BE A BIG PART OF YOUR ETHOS – WHAT IS YOUR APPROACH?
“Sustainability is a huge part of Hector Maclean. All our fabrics are recycled, donated or saved from landfill or dead stock. We try to save every single scrap from our studio and reuse it for other looks, and we do zero waste pattern cutting. Environmental issues are huge to me, I think harking back to my background with things being quite hard growing up – I was always quite loathed to throw things away and I think that has carried through to the brand, where we try and be as ecological as physically possible, and use synthetics as little as possible as they don’t biodegrade; we try and use natural fibres where we can.”
THE NEW COLLECTION SHOWED YOUR CONTINUING EVOLUTION AS A DESIGNER WHILE RETAINING THE SIGNATURE HECTOR MACLEAN ELEMENTS WE LOVE. HOW DO YOU BALANCE THAT CREATIVE DESIRE TO EVOLVE AND INNOVATE WHILE MAINTAINING A BRAND IDENTITY THAT’S PROVED SO SUCCESSFUL?
“That’s very kind, thank you. I keep our brand signatures such as pleats and the clear historical British aesthetic. The strong independent women that our brand centres itself on is pivotal, and that nucleus allows us to maintain our identity.”