Friday morning. Sunshine. Clock ticking towards 10:00. University of Westminster, Marylebone Road, LDN.
Light, Spacious. Smart. A far cry from conditions within The Truman Brewery on Brick Lane, where Graduate Fashion Week would aspire to creating a buzz three days later on a wet Monday morning. Four days that many a Fashion Design course leader now wisely selects not to be a part of. It’s a trend.
Accompanied from reception to what I was told would be the portfolio exhibition hall, I was escorted down in an elevator, doors opening to a scene that felt like an early Fischerspooner video. Models in their underwear, arms wrapped around themselves, attempting decency. Dressers, in position, ready for the first rehearsal. The air, the heat backstage, whoa. Show due to start at 12:00.
Skidding like a tiger on Vaseline, some scouted youth who looked part Ziggy, part flapper girl on something harder than poppers, speeding towards Hair & Make-up. A vision. One sheer-clad upper half on that skeletal youth, reminding me of what Bowie wore for the album cover of The World of David Bowie (Decca, 1973), lower half in hand-cut reels of blunt trim, suited to a jazz dive doll. Kid who looked like a disgraced regional swimming champion, styled by Kansai Yamamoto, 山本 寛斎. Yum.
And then, a total WTF moment as the doors began to close… the footwear.
Going up.
During the University of Westminster BA (Hons) portfolio exhibition, the work of Hayden Henry Hamilton had mobiles going crazy. The Hamilton portfolio area was dominated by a pair of (insert appropriate word here) that drew attention in that direction. Footwear suited to Frankenstein’s darling monster. Think Horror fiction, Gothic fiction, Science fiction.
The very idea. The daring.
Inspired by the ever-shifting persona of music legend David Bowie and a love of Brutalist architecture, Hamilton creates distinctive, modern pieces for urban players.
Cohesive and creative, the HHH collection embraces the fluidity now acceptable within menswear. Impeccable tailoring. Stark seaming details, softened with delicate, sheer shirts. Everything so balanced, in harmony, with a certain rhythm, right down to the genius logo of HHH.
Uncompromising shapes inspire innovative jackets, envisioned as metaphorical armour against the social norms seen in traditional menswear. Insecurities are vanquished and empowerment pervades.
Fine cashmere and exquisite Italian wool suiting are galvanised into bold shapes with clever seaming details. Raw, unfinished hems of silk organza pieces emerge from under more casual English milled jersey. Sartorial statements.
Joyce Thornton, Robert Leach, Jane Hayward, Eugene Reeder, Lauren Loftus, Rosie Wallin and technical staff within University of Westminster’s Fashion Design team must be commended for creating an environment in which the former Business Studies student became a visionary alongside other bright sparks, such as Lottie Grace Robinson and Soma Faitanin.
‘With a suit, always wear big British shoes,’ Bowie once advised.
This strategy has been taken to another level as Hamilton creates unique and arresting accessories through experimentation with modelling and 3D printing on a second-hand piece of kit set up in his bedroom. Now, there’s a Punk DIY approach.
Highly-structured, bulky boots (again with a hint of weave by Kansai Yamamoto) contrast with a soft hand-twisted horse leather military / laundry sack of a manbag completing this memorable collection. Hamilton should be signed by Nike ASAP. This footwear is far more exciting than the Nike Air Bubble.
FIVE
‘Bowie quickly became the core muse for my graduate collection as soon as I started diving into his ever-changing characters and an androgynous wardrobe that was so far ahead of its time. This constant character growth inspired me to play with the ideas of what my collection could look like. Rather than showing six tailored suiting looks or six jersey heavy, I wanted to portray this growth with my own storyline inspired by that of Bowie, showing progression of one’s character through the looks.’
FOUR
‘The printer purchase was made from desperation to make my vision come to life. I had sketched the initial boot design in November 2022 – at this point I knew nothing about 3D printing or footwear design. The process was so foreign to me, but I fell in love with it all when researching the best ways (financially) to produce a shoe and stumbled across 3D printing.’
THREE
‘After months of reaching out to 3D printing facilities around the world, I got a few quotes back that were all very unattainable. It was around February of this year that I found an online community dedicated to 3D printed footwear. It was through these forums that I learnt everything I needed to know to print shoes from my bedroom and where I also met other people on the same journey as myself.’
TWO
‘One of these people was Kyle (@re_run__), a fellow student based in New York who remodelled my design to optimise it for printing and inspired me to buy my own printer. From the day the printer arrived at my place, it took me a week to have a wearable set of shoes in front of me. I was hooked on this process.’
ONE
‘Kyle and I went on to further optimise my design, bringing the print time from three days for each shoe to one day and fourteen hours. Almost six months after my initial sketch, I ended up with a pair of boots, low-top sneakers and three pairs of slip-on mules.’
APPLAUSE
FOOTNOTE
Hayden Henry Hamilton began an internship at The Vivienne Westwood Studio three days after graduation.
Curation by Peter Paul Hartnett
The Hartnett Archive @ Camera Press
