Nihilism (Alexander McQueen collection)

Nihilism (Spring/Summer 1994) is the third collection by the British designer Alexander McQueen for his eponymous fashion house. McQueen developed the collection following the launch of his own label with Taxi Driver, which was exhibited at the Ritz Hotel in March 1993 London in lieu of a fashion show. An eclectic collection with no straightforward theme, Nihilism pushed back against dominant womenswear trends with its hard tailoring, and aggressive, sexualised styling. It was created in collaboration with McQueen's associates Simon Ungless and Fleet Bigwood. Like Taxi Driver, Nihilism included experimental techniques, silhouettes, and materials, such as dresses made from cellophane, stained with clay, or adorned with locusts.

Nihilism was McQueen's first professional runway show. The British Fashion Council provided backing; it was the first time they had done so for a new designer. It was staged during London Fashion Week on 18 October 1993 at the Bluebird Garage, which at the time had a reputation as a hub for drug use and criminal activity. The styling was intended to be provocative and disturbing. The clothing was highly sexualised: thin fabric that exposed the skin underneath, or garments cut to expose breasts and vulvas. McQueen's signature bumster trousers, whose extremely low waist exposed the top of the intergluteal cleft, made their first runway appearance in Nihilism. Models were styled to look filthy and aggressive, with inspiration from the punk subculture, and were encouraged to act belligerently on the runway.

The collection received mixed reviews. Journalists had a difficult time deciding what to make of it. Many accused McQueen of misogyny, a characterization to which he consistently objected. McQueen returned to many of the ideas he explored in Nihilism throughout his career, especially the interplay of sexuality and violence. Three items from Nihilism appeared in the retrospective exhibit Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty.

Background
British fashion designer Alexander McQueen was known for his imaginative, sometimes controversial designs, and dramatic fashion shows. During his nearly twenty-year career, he explored a broad range of ideas and themes, including historicism, romanticism, femininity, sexuality, and death. The son of a London taxicab driver and a teacher, he grew up in one of the poorer neighborhoods in London's East End. During childhood, he witnessed his sisters experiencing domestic violence at the hands of her husband, which became a formative influence on his designs.

McQueen began his career in fashion as an apprentice with Savile Row tailors Anderson & Sheppard before briefly joining Gieves & Hawkes as a pattern cutter. His work on Savile Row earned him a reputation as an expert tailor. From October 1990 to 1992, McQueen was enrolled in the eighteen-month masters-level course in fashion design at Central Saint Martins (CSM), a London art school. McQueen met a number of his future collaborators at CSM, including Simon Ungless, with whom he later lived. His graduation collection, Jack the Ripper Stalks His Victims, was bought in its entirety by magazine editor Isabella Blow, who became his mentor and his muse.

McQueen wanted to work for an existing fashion brand rather than assume the risk of founding his own, but friends persuaded him to present a collection for the Autumn/Winter 1993 season at London Fashion Week. McQueen launched his own label with Taxi Driver, which was exhibited at the Ritz Hotel in London in lieu of a fashion show. The collection was the debut of the bumster trouser, whose extremely low waist exposed the top of the intergluteal cleft, and which became a McQueen brand signature. McQueen had no financial backing at the beginning of his career, so his early collections were created on minimal budgets, using cheap fabric and unconventional materials to make up for the financial shortfall.

Label
Although Taxi Driver had been critically well-received, McQueen was still hesitant about running his own company; it was financially risky and he was afraid to fail. He continued to work on one-off designs, mainly sold to friends and acquaintances, while looking for a position. His work at this time was inspired by the prehistoric adventure film Quest for Fire (1981), famous 18th century sadomasochistic novel The 120 Days of Sodom, and coverage of natural disasters in National Geographic magazine. He was also influenced by fellow British designers and CSM graduates Hussein Chalayan and John Galliano.

Again, despite his hesitation, his friends persuaded him to present a collection for Spring/Summer 1994; this time a proper fashion show. McQueen did not have his own studio at the time, so he and Ungless manufactured the items by hand at their shared home. Fleet Bigwood, a CSM lecturer, designed and produced prints.

Collection
Nihilism was an eclectic collection without a straightforward theme. It pushed back against the dominant mode for womenswear at the time, which author Judith Watt described as "anti-hard chic and antitailoring". Journalist Dana Thomas wrote that the name came from a theme of "anti-Romanticism". Author Andrew Wilson called it "heroin chic". There was a degree of primitivism, including a latex dress covered in dead locusts, inspired by a National Geographic article about an African famine caused by the insects. McQueen later said of the collection: "It was a reaction to designers romanticizing ethnic dressing, like a Masai-inspired dress made of materials the Masai could never afford." McQueen was well known at the time for his sharp tailoring, which appeared in the form of tightly-fitted suit jackets paired with slim trousers, including low-cut bumsters. There were historicist elements in the form of draped neo-classical dresses, references to les merveilleuses, and the Arts and Crafts movement. Some long jackets could be described as "Edwardian", including one with turned-up cuffs.

Like Taxi Driver, Nihilism made heavy use of cheap fabric and unconventional materials, such as "shellac, beetle blood, and human hair". There were skirts and dresses made from clear plastic wrap. One screen print was made with a paste of resin and actual rust. At one point during production, Ungless accidentally spilled a can of liquid latex onto a drain cover with a grid pattern. McQueen tossed glitter into it and they used it as the front panel of a dress. Many of the items were distressed with paint or mud for effect. One cellophane dress was covered with rust-coloured paint mimicking bloodstains. Other garments had hand prints or smears in fake blood over the breast area; Watt suggested a possible reference to Saint Agatha, a Catholic saint whose breasts were amputated during her martyrdom. Bigwood recalled McQueen telling him to "disrespect" a particular piece of cheap fabric which had been covered with gold lustre; Bigwood says he "threw every chemical I had in my studio at it". The fabric was turned into a frock coat. According to Ungless, McQueen was somewhat "obsessed" with Chalayan's degree collection, The Tangent Flows, which had featured dresses buried for weeks to distress them, and sought to outdo it. He cut several dresses from white chiffon, sprayed them with mud made from red clay, and left them hanging outside for weeks. The clay left the dresses stained rust red, with chips of clay embedded in the fabric.

The clothing was highly sexualised: thin fabric that exposed the skin underneath, or garments cut to expose midriffs, breasts, and vulvas. Signature sharp tailoring, including the return of the bumster trousers. The intent of the bumsters was to elongate the torso and expose the base of the spine, which McQueen felt was the most erotic spot on the human body regardless of gender. Watt suggests that the bumsters may have been inspired by 16th century tailoring, in which men's trousers were cut to sit very low on the hips; McQueen owned a copy of The Tailor's Pattern Book, a 1589 book of patterns by Spanish mathematician Juan de Alcega.

Runway show
Nihilism was McQueen's first professional runway show. The British Fashion Council provided backing; it was the first time they had done so for a new designer. It was staged during London Fashion Week on 18 October 1993 at the Bluebird Garage, which at the time had a reputation as a hub for drug use and criminal activity. Cultural theorist Per Strömberg described the choice of location as emblematic of the "underground and somehow underdog approach" of London Fashion Week. Invitations were made from pages torn out of an old encyclopedia and hand-stamped with the show details. There was a great deal of anticipation about the show before it opened. Katie Grand, then the fashion director for culture magazine Dazed and Confused, described it as "one of those nineties happenings where no one quite knew what we were going to see".

The soundtrack consisted of grunge, punk, and house music interspersed with silence; selected tracks included "Pretend We're Dead" by L7, "I Wanna Get High" by Cypress Hill, and Nirvana songs. Hair was by Barnabe and Eugene Souleiman, make-up by Lisa Butler, and overall styling by Seta Niland. There was very little seating, so most of the audience – about 300 people, mostly CSM students and some fashion journalists – stood. McQueen's mother and Isabella Blow were seated in the front row. The show started 30 minutes late.

The aesthetic was intended to be provocative and disturbing. The clothing was highly sexualised: thin fabric that exposed the skin underneath, or garments cut to expose breasts and vulvas. One model walked bare-breasted, covering herself "with bloodstained hands". Another had black pants that were slit from waist to hem in the back, exposing red lining along with the model's entire lower body. Some items were made to appear wet to the point of translucency, in the manner of a wet T-shirt. This echoed an effect Galliano had employed for his collection Fallen Angels (Spring/Summer 1986). The low-cut bumster trousers appeared on the runway for the first time in Nihilism.

The models were styled to look filthy and aggressive, with inspiration from the punk subculture. Some were smeared with what appeared to be mud or blood. Makeup was used to give a hollowed look to their eyes. Hair was streaked with red and "pinned up haphazardly" or styled into Mohican haircuts. They were encouraged to act aggressively, giving the show what curator Claire Wilcox described as a "threatening mood". Some made obscene gestures such as the finger toward the audience. One androgynous-looking male model walked the runway shirtless to "shock guests with the gender confusion", as Thomas put it.

Reception
Reception to Nihilism was mixed. The journalists in attendance were unsure what to make of the show; apparently many photographers were so disturbed they stopped taking pictures partway through. Dana Thomas reports that those who were present wrote a great deal about it, to a degree she felt was unusual for a designer presenting his first show. Many of these reviewers accused McQueen of misogyny, a characterization to which he consistently objected.

Marion Hume review
Marion Hume wrote a full-page review for The Independent which opened by declaring "Alexander McQueen's debut was a horror show". She called out the macabre styling, saying it was "rather a lot to take in the name of frocks", but explained that she stayed to watch because she felt McQueen had "something new to say" and "has an assured view of fashion". Hume lauded McQueen's tailoring skills and the way he used "traditional skills in a new way". She concluded that tolerating shocking newness was necessary to allow London's fashion industry "to keep its creative supremacy".

Other authors have commented on Hume's review. Andrew Wilson felt that Hume was, despite her criticism, interested in McQueen's innovation and novelty. Curator Kate Bethune concurred somewhat. Evans argued that Hume was too focused on the disturbing styling while failing to notice "the historical eclecticism which also permeated the show". Judith Watt also criticised Hume's review for leaning on class stereotypes with its emphasis on McQueen's "East End" origins.

Other reviews
Much of the British press ignored Nihilism. Major fashion publications such as Vogue and Women's Wear Daily also did not report on it.

Although the show was not explicitly derived from cinematic influences, as many later shows were, several reviewers drew connections to media regardless. David Hayes of the Evening Standard argued that horror films, such as Carrie (1976) and those made by Hammer Film Productions, must have been an influence. The Observer described the gold-painted frock coat as "based on the torn layers of a billboard".

Analysis
Kate Bethune argued that McQueen's primary intent with the collection was to build his brand. She identified the appearance of McQueen's logo on the front of a white dress as an element of this effort. Andrew Groves, a fellow designer and early boyfriend of McQueen's, believed that McQueen's shock tactics were intended to secure the press attention that would draw him a financial backer. Fashion theorist Caroline Evans agreed, arguing that McQueen's shows became less aggressive and more purely theatrical after he secured backing.

Rebecca Arnold, analysing the interplay of sexuality and brutality in fashion for Fashion Theory, highlighted Nihilism as an example of how McQueen had relied on this aesthetic from the earliest stages of his career. She wrote: "Themes of anxiety and distress continue to be combined with a latent sexuality in his work."

The accusation that McQueen was a misogynist persisted throughout much of his career, although he consistently objected to it. McQueen's early friends and collaborators recalled that his intent with his early collections, including Nihilism, was to make women feel empowered. Bobby Hillson, who mentored McQueen at CSM, thought the issue was that McQueen was "not particularly articulate" with expressing his ideas at that stage of his career. Alice Smith, who did early promotional work for McQueen, recalled him telling her that he wanted women wearing his clothing "to feel strong and powerful". Groves and another friend, Nicholas "Trixie" Townsend, recalled that McQueen had designed for women who were confident, androgynous "outsiders" and who frequented the same gay clubs that he did.

Legacy
McQueen returned to the combination of tightly-fitted jackets over bumster trousers throughout his career. McQueen is generally credited with sparking a global trend for low-rise pants via the bumsters. McQueen's next few shows were styled with a similar blend of aggression and sexuality, inspired by his favorite artists. Press coverage continued to be mostly appalled, although his work garnered some approval amongst the criticism.

Isabella Blow was photographed for Dazed and Confused in McQueen's designs for Nihilism following the show. The Daily Telegraph reported that McQueen had sold 200 pieces from Nihilism by February 1994, although Thomas clarified in her 2015 book Gods and Kings that this represented orders from retailers rather than consumer sales. Further, she reports that since McQueen did not have a contract with any manufacturer, the orders went unfulfilled.

Tiina Laakkonen, an early supporter of McQueen's, lent three items from Nihilism to the retrospective exhibition Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty: a black jacket in silk and cotton, and a pair of trousers and a jacket in gray silk and wool.