Alexander Lewis Wants To Bring Out The Brazilian In You
And he’s bringing one of the hottest AW14 debut collections we’ve ever seen. Alexander Lewis is a fashion designer with a Brazillian flare.
Emerging London-based American/Brazilian designer, Alexander Lewis, probably won’t be on your radar yet – but you might want to bookmark this page, because he’s definitely someone you’ll want to be wearing when his first AW14 collection launches this summer. (Annoying to have to wait, we know – but you do like to be ahead of everyone else, right?)
As soon as we saw his bright, Chinese-inspired printed capsule collection – that, fyi he describes as ‘European sportswear’ – we knew we wanted to find out more. So we phoned him up and asked a few questions about his vibe. ‘I design for a woman who loves life and lives for positive energy,’ Alexander tells The Debrief. ‘She is eclectic and fun, she is global and aware, she is never what you expect. The Alexander Lewis woman is young at heart – and her spirit is infectious.’
Don’t expect tracksuits, but comfort and wearability are key to his mix. The collection features silk printed mini and midi skirts, wide-legged printed trousers, ultra covetable, bright waffle knit jumpers and ‘mother and child’ printed classic T-shirts, which are knotted at the waist.
 
There are two particular details you should pay attention to in Alexander’s collection. Firstly, the fact that he trained as a menswear designer, with stints on Savile Row at Norton & Sons and E Tautz (he also interned under the larger-than-life Editor-at-Large of US Vogue, Andre Leon Talley.) ‘Menswear is all about fit and details – two elements that I focus on a lot.’ That might be why the oversized fit of our favourite piece, the oyster-colored silk bomber jacket – with its perfectly ruched hem – works so well on the tight black mini skirt.
Secondly, those brilliant Chinese-inspired illustrations you see (which include an eagle, and a mother and child) are in collaboration with contemporary French artist, Marie Angeletti with Marie’s imagery woven as jacquard, or printed onto Alexander’s pieces.
If you like this fusion of contemporary art and fashion, then hold tight: Alexander’s Artist Intervention series will continue to be threaded into his next three capsule collections, too.
The final reason to love Alexander – who counts the equally electric Mary Katrantzou, Sacai, and Nicolas Ghesquiere as his favorite designers, and would love to see actresses Lake Bell and Diane Kruger in his designs – is because he also wants you to look sexy, like a girl from his home town of Bahia in Brazil. (Yeah, we know, what a hero.) ‘The Brazilian side of me wants to add a little sass and sex appeal to my occasionally austere and severe American/English side. So there is a never-ending tango of cultural references!’
Recommend0 recommendationsPublished in Uncategorized
