The history of Alexander McQueen's Hoof Boots

When last March the new creative director of Alexander McQueen, Sean McGirr, presented his first vision for the brand on the runway, the public's response was quite adverse. Perhaps it was because the collection appeared decidedly impractical and sometimes comical, despite the silhouettes being "out of the ordinary" - in hindsight, many have learned to love the metallic minidress in Brat green - or perhaps because some on social media went so far as to claim that the creative director was a «mediocre» designer compared to the founding genius. However, it must also be said that holding a position like that of McQueen's artistic director means facing an extremely loyal fanbase to their idol. Despite the initial criticisms, several months after his debut on the runway leading the brand, Sean McGirr seems to have hit the mark with a pair of shoes, the Hoof Shoes (which in Italian we could also call clogs, but we will adapt to the trend). The boots designed by McGirr for McQueen FW24 are made of pony hair, equipped with a real horseshoe under the sole and an enameled hoof at the tip, with the total black version pushing the limits of eccentricity with the addition of a thick horse tail on the heel. From the thick platform to the choice of materials, every element of the footwear brings to mind the legs of horses, so much so that some fashion publications have dared to associate the style with the "horse girl" trend. If only they had remembered shows like It’s a Jungle Out There or Savage Beauty, McQueen's passion for dramatic looks, shoes like the Armadillo, and the designer's obsession with the animalistic. Forget TikTok trends. 

"It’s a Jungle Out There", the criticism of the press and the fashion industry

When Alexander McQueen showcased It’s a Jungle Out There for his eponymous brand's FW97 collection, he had just started working as the artistic director for the haute couture house Givenchy, at the time already owned by the conglomerate LVMH. Even before the famous “creative director musical chair” was a thing, before the movements of CEOs and designers became an integral part of popular gossip, McQueen lashed out against the system - as he was always prone to do. While watching a documentary on gazelles, the designer found a rather amusing analogy between the poor animal's fate and his entrance into the Givenchy atelier: «I watched those gazelles getting munched by lions and hyenas and said, 'That's me!' Someone's chasing me all the time, and if I'm caught, they'll pull me down. Fashion is a jungle full of nasty, bitchy hyenas», one of his most famous quotes reports. One of the most spectacular shows in fashion history, It’s a Jungle Out There remains memorable for the makeup of the models, with disheveled hair and heavy eyeliner, for the setting, which included stoves and broken machines (which, incidentally, caught fire during the event), but above all for the majesty of the collection, composed of 75 looks. From blazers with pointed shoulders reminiscent of gazelle shoulder blades, long horns that adorned the jackets, extra tight black leather suits, metal inserts on brown suede, and jewelry that nodded to the stylistic codes of South African cultures, the Hoof Shoes made their debut, in this case, in a "gazelle" version, both in color and silhouette, more subdued and refined compared to McGirr's "horses". Could it be that the new creative director of the most controversial maison ever wanted to pay homage to the founder, while simultaneously launching a criticism of the fashion industry? To answer the question, we find the right words in two more of Lee McQueen's most famous quotes: «Fashion should be a form of escapism, not a form of imprisonment» «Fashion should be a form of escapism, not a form of imprisonment», and «I want people to be afraid of the women I dress». 

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW12

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW24

McQueen FW12

McQueen FW12

McQueen FW12

McQueen FW12

McQueen FW12

McQueen FW12

Over the years, both after It’s a Jungle Out There and well before, several designers have been inspired by the animal world to design new footwear, from the tabi by Margiela (which, in truth, are mainly inspired by Japanese culture) to the webbed lace-ups by JW Anderson created for FW23. Even Sarah Burton, during her tenure as artistic director for McQueen and even if in a less dramatic manner, reintroduced the aesthetic code launched by the designer on the runway. For FW12, the disciple of fashion's enfant terrible designed leather and fur ankle boots with metallic soles and platforms almost identical to the silhouette presented by McGirr last spring. Burton's collection that year was much softer and more delicate compared to that of the Irish designer, with lace and feather boas, hourglass coats with metallic inserts, white and pink tulle, for a show that, as she herself stated backstage, aimed to celebrate «a beautiful future, positivity, and optimism». Judging by the Hoof Shoes and McGirr's first collection for McQueen, the designer seems to have preferred to remain in the realm of realism for his debut. Even though, at this moment, it seems that the only real thing in the world is fear.