All clothing by Alecsander Rothschild
Alecsander Rothschild caught the world’s attention at Copenhagen Fashion Week with “Love Letter,” a menswear collection focused on fabrics, craftsmanship, and playing with the shape of the human body. It’s no surprise that the collection earned him the runner-up spot at the Design Nest competition, and a place in Vogue Italia’s “New Talents” supplement. The collection is a succinct capsule of our current cultural moment. It has a clear and vested interest in challenging fashion norms, harnessing the kind of raw sexuality you’re more likely to find in womenswear. Playing with gender and sexuality certainly seems to be the topic du jour, but what sets Alecsander Rothschild apart is a commitment to craftsmanship. With a degree in tailoring and an apprenticeship with Iris Van Herpen behind him, it’s clear to see where his interest in finish and form comes from.
Our Rothschild editorial, “Garden Mornings,” is a tribute to the act of cruising, which also inspired the “Love Letter” collection. (For those of you not familiar with the term, “Cruising” is the act of seeking a sexual partner in a public place, and is mostly associated with the gay male community). The series touches the subject of sexual liberation through anonymity, and seeks to dismantle the taboo around cruising. The location of the shoot — the Royal Palace gardens in Stockholm — is an well-known cruising spot, and the stunning images masterfully merge the space into a place where lust and beauty meet.
SLEEK also met Alecsander in Copenhagen, to discuss his work, and the fashion industry, and identity in the modern world.
Let’s talk about where you’re currently at as a designer. What’s inspiring and challenging you right now?
I think the social climate of the times we live in right now. It calls for people to make more radical decisions and to express their opinions in general, and that touches the fashion industry strongly. Take Helmut Lang’s new collection for instance, or even just the concept of the relaunch of the brand. I think fashion is at its best when it communicates.
What is your approach to fashion and design? You’ve said that it started with a passion for dressing the body.
Yeah, that’s how it started for me, but it somewhat turned into a visual language more than just dressing the body. More than anything, I see it as a way of sending signals of who I am and what I believe in. There are so many codes to use. I would say that fashion can be a tool for change. I’m very romantic in that sense.
All clothing by Alecsander Rothschild
How does the digital world impact your work? Where and how do you find inspiration?
Of course, I check Instagram a lot to find inspiring people who aren’t nearby, and that filters into my subconscious when I am creating something. Mostly I like to keep friends involved in what I do. For example, the cast for my graduation show consisted of my actual friends, and I had them in mind when creating the collection. I’m privileged in the sense of having friends who believe in what I wanted to create. Also with “Love Letter”, I was fortunate enough to have a friend from Uni who studied Visual communication, Emil Balesic, with whom I shared a lot of ideas. We pushed each other’s graduation projects forward. I made him to interpret my research for “Love Letter” into the campaign featured in this article. Just the two of us created and photographed it, with our friend Lefteris wearing the clothes.
You’ve been invited to showcase “Love Letter” at Paris Fashion Week — tell us about that.
I’m still pinching myself! It’s always been a dream of mine to present my work in Paris. I get very emotional when I think about it. Paris has this particular prestige — it’s where the luxury houses are, it’s where haute couture is, it’s the center of the industry. So it’s overwhelming to be a part of that. It validates my hopes for a career and future within the medium I love the most. The show will be at Institut Suedois, and then there’ll be a showroom at Ofr. Gallery/Bookshop in Paris.
All clothing by Alecsander Rothschild
We are constantly changing and adjusting the identities we build for ourselves. Do you see value within that process?
I think change is good. I see it more as an organic movement, rather than constantly creating identities. I mirror myself a lot in my surroundings. The people around me also affect my ways of thinking and being, and they inspire me a lot. I think it’s healthy, and I learn a lot about my own boundaries this way.
Would you say your clothes create an identity for the wearer?
I love the idea of identity-driven design, and I think I definitely practice that. My design process is very personal, and I use my emotions a lot. I also believe it’s good to dive into the traumas and dark experiences. To visualize these experiences is to face them, in a way. Aesthetics can vary and change rapidly with life experience, so by extension, it’s good to push oneself towards new experiences. As scary as it can get, I’ve gotten a lot of good things out of it, and I think people can see it and relate to it in the work I present.