Welcome to the 81th insertion of DEMUR®, an analytical series highlighting the intricacies of the artistic world and the minutiae lying within. In this episode we remember Shaun Leane and Alexander McQueen’s friendship, documenting their radical approach to jewelry.
First meeting in 1992, both McQueen and Leane were studying under their respective apprenticeships as a tailor and traditional jeweler. Retaining little field experience, they shared many artistic commonalities along with their age, upbringing and approach to the atelier world, sparking a life-long, boundary pushing friendship.
Alexander McQueen founded his namesake that same year, debuting his first collection; “Taxi Driver”, the following season. Swiftly gaining traction, the designer would hold three more showings before contacting Leane to commission a full body, metallic item for his Autumn 1995 collection, “Highland Rape”. The designer vaguely instructed Leane to “Design me a piece, in this style, that covers the torso, the arms and the head”, and so he did, without showing the designer anything until 3 days before the show.
Allowing the jeweler to experiment, McQueen would set a precedent for many seasons to come. The pair would collaborate almost every six months, including a brief venture at the Givenchy maison, in which budgets were far higher, and production timelines longer. With every collection the stakes seemed to grow, crafting pieces like the Autumn 1996 “Crown of Thorns” headpiece, or the “Coiled Collar” full silver neck brace, which was also used for Bjork’s ‘Homogenic’ cover (Givenchy SS97).
Working with Alexander McQueen, fashion’s most provocative designer, Leane was consistently forced to mold and reinvent technique. Many of their most outrageous ideas were conceptualized in a bar or pub, where McQueen would simply convey the next season’s theme. Looking to the Spring 1998 “Spine” corset, the unfathomably intricate “Yashmak” of Spring 2000 or the “Coil Corset” which is literally bound by screws (AW98), the duo’s mastery becomes undeniable.
Much of Shaun Leane’s personal collection was recently sold at auction via 'Sotheby's' for $2.6 Million USD.
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