What do you get when you cross avant-garde with English sensibility? Behold, the wonderfully whimsy designs of Alistair James.
A fledgling brand from womenswear designer Nicholas Alistair Walsh and textile designer David James Wise, the duo met while working at Alexander McQueen.
Walsh eventually left McQueen to work at Gareth Pugh, and around this time he and Wise decided to create a small, six-piece capsule collection, originally conceived for a photo shoot. They soon caught the attention of the BFC, who encouraged the friends to continue.
Their AW17 collection took its inspiration from the Brontë sisters and Kate Bush’s Wuthering Heights, and indeed Englishness seeps out of everything they do (Walsh was born and raised in Yorkshire, while Wise is a Londoner). An integral feature of the brand is championing British craftsmanship, with most of their fabrics sourced at home, including tweed woven in Haworth – the birthplace of the Brontë sisters. Today they work from a South London studio.
The designs are theatrical and romantic, as you’d expect – ruffles, tweeds and bows pay homage to Great British classicism. But the duo also know how to deliver the unexpected. Their latest collection includes lashings of patent leather in the form of oversized corset belts, and bold embroidery reading “Heathcliffe” and “It’s Me Cathy.” Wise comes up with the textile design and sketches the collection, while Walsh creates the patterns. The brand recently said they hope to expand to a full runway show by 2018, but in the meantime you can shop the eclectic and luxurious conceptions of Alistair James at Farfetch.com.
Written by Thea Carley
