We wear black on Wednesdays: How designers are inspired by witches and why it looks so chic

Traditionally, the second half of October is celebrated under the auspices of Halloween. Social media users are enthusiastically sharing themed recipes, spooky-tagged playlists, and even ideas on how to uniquely decorate an apartment. Makeup artists showcase crazy makeup options in the spirit of the main villains and villains of the movie world, and fashion influencers collect collections of Halloween looks that anyone can copy.

Meanwhile, the fashion industry and its main representatives have always been inspired by mysticism, esotericism and, of course, evil spirits of popular culture. Especially witches. And the point here is not the clothes of the star girls, who every year pay tribute to the heroes of films and TV series such as “Hocus Pocus”, “American Horror Story” or “Charmed”, but the attention. from the design workshop. Witch images appeared in the collections of Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, Saint Laurent and many other fashion houses.

As Halloween approaches, we’re sharing how designers are creating intricate looks with a witchy aesthetic. Let’s also try to understand why she always looks so stylish. We’ve compiled five iconic shows featuring witches who made history.

Why is the fashion industry fascinated with witches?

To answer this question, you will need to delve into history and get to know witches a little better. Although they were first mentioned in the Old Testament, the image of the witch was only formed in the Middle Ages. At that time, every beautiful girl (especially red-haired and green-eyed) was under suspicion. It was believed that a truly honest woman should have a rich inner world, but not an attractive appearance. Beautiful girls were called seductresses who used their data for personal gain.

Meanwhile, witches were defined not only by their appearance but also by their weight. In the Middle Ages, people were sure that girls under 50 kilograms were witches because this was the only weight a broom could withstand. It sounds reasonable, so we won’t argue with the myth. I agree, so far all models fit the description – beautiful, tall, slender and very mysterious.

Witches in popular culture are also not devoid of external characteristics. Take, for example, the gothic image of Elvira, the “mistress of darkness” with pale skin and deliberately sexy dress, or the chilling beauty of the White Witch in The Chronicles of Narnia. Let’s not forget the Mirror Queen from “The Brothers Grimm” played by Monica Bellucci (for a second) and the Lamia from “Stardust” played by Michelle Pfeiffer. And the trio in 1987’s “The Witches of Eastwick” look impressive.

By the way, modern witches are in no way inferior to their predecessors. Remember the third season of American Horror Story about the coven of witches, after watching it you immediately want to wear black and add a stereotypical hat to your look. 0% judgment, 100% understanding.

The list of witches in the cinema can be continued for a very long time. But this has no practical meaning, since all of the above already justifies the fashion industry’s interest in fabulous witches. Add to the popular cultural image a centuries-old history, conspiracy theories and designers’ love of mysticism – and we get what we get.

Well, let’s not forget that the public has long called many models witches, which indicates either indecent beauty or an ideal body. Now let’s see how designers worked with this image and understand why it looks stylish.

Martine Sitbon

We’re sure you’ve seen this image of Kate Moss more than once on Pinterest and other social networks. Especially around Halloween. Here is French brand Martine Sitbon’s witch-inspired spring-summer 1993 fashion show. At that time, models appeared on the catwalk in black silhouette dresses, flashy headdresses and suits covered with translucent organza.

Although the collection was good, only one photograph made history. We are, of course, talking about the aforementioned Kate Moss, who appeared on the catwalk in a pointed-collared black dress with almost weightless white fabric flowing over it. A pointy hat with organza casually attached added a magical touch to the final look. I agree, it looks very stylish. But why? Witch aesthetics are based on three pillars: sexuality, darkness and mysticism. All this is more than valid for the fashion industry, which is why the design workshop accepts experiments with such pleasure.

Alexander McQueen

Alexander McQueen always knew how to surprise and shock, he was not afraid to make very loud statements through his clothes. But in 2007, he surpassed himself by adding a mystical story connected to his family to the collection. It turns out that while researching the designer’s mother’s family, she learned that she was descended from victims of the famous Salem trial of 1692, in which 19 people were executed. This theme inspired the show, which began with a chilling video. Then the light fell on the black podium and the audience saw a red-framed pentagram. And yes, the models walked on exactly that.

Vivienne Westwood

Vivienne Westwood was also inspired by witches. And if you think that we will now talk about tight corsets, lace-up dresses and very deep necklines, you are very wrong. Because we’re talking about the 1983 Witch collection, created in collaboration with artist Keith Haring. In addition to Haring’s recognizable prints, the catwalk also featured images with references to pagan culture, shifting the collection’s focus to sharp geometry.

saint laurent

In 2012, Hedi Slimane became the creative director of Saint Laurent, replacing Stefano Pilati. In the autumn, he presented his first collection, whose inspiration was not the great legacy of the fashion house, but the designer’s muse – the famous American occultist Marjorie Cameron. Thus, modern witches appeared on the Saint Laurent catwalk with flowing black dresses with very deep necklines, translucent blouses, wide-brimmed hats and ultra-tight trousers.

Comme des Garçons

What happens when you mix mysticism with the avant-garde? The result was the Comme des Garçons spring-summer 2016 collection, codenamed The Blue Witch. The main theme of the show was female power, and Rei Kawakubo’s husband, Adrian Ioffe, described the collection as: “Witches. Strong women who are not understood by the world.” By the way, in 2004, the designer himself discussed this topic in an interview: “I was thinking about witches. Witches in the original sense of the word, in the sense of women with power. Initially, witches were benevolent, but people mocked them because they did not understand them. Negativity about them “We are faced with an image.” Rei Kawakubo presented on the catwalk intricately designed fantasy images, in which you can easily imagine the witches of the art house genre.