If you were to picture a family-run,
sustainably minded fashion business,
Alyx might not be the first to come
to mind. A streetwear-inflected take
on industrial aesthetics, complete with
fetishistic hardware and nylon chest-rigs,
Matthew Williams’s cult brand has all
the signifiers of subcultural cool. And he,
dressed in leathers, sutured with piercings
and bedecked in tattoos, surrounded
by fans and friends from the Hadids to
Skepta, appears its perfect ambassador.
But Williams exists worlds away from
icy impenetrability, and through his
brand – named after his eldest daughter
with wife and business partner Jennifer- he’s built a community-oriented
business that is determinedly inclusive.
“I come from streetwear, and that’s
what streetwear is: a place where you
gravitate towards a like-minded group
of people,” says the softly spoken and
sweet-natured designer. “Too many
people use ‘community’ as a strategic
word in their business plan, but for me,
it’s about spending time with people I
want to spend time with, or appreciating
someone else’s work and wanting to
collaborate with them. There’s no
strategy around it.” Williams’s career has
been built on that collective spirit, and
alongside some impressive names.
Raised in California, Williams grew
up embedded in skate culture, and by
his late teens had met designer Keith
Richardson of Corpus (an LA label
with a grunge-infused take on preppy
Americana), dropped out of school and
started working as the brand’s production
manager by day and DJing by night.
It wasn’t long before his stylist friends
in the music industry started asking him
to make custom pieces for their clients.
His first big hit? The sound-reactive
light-up jacket Kanye West wore at the
2008 Grammys – its success meant that
when Kanye decided to launch his first
fashion brand, Pastelle, it was Williams
he enlisted to set up a sample studio.
Meanwhile, a chance encounter with
Lady Gaga soon found him collaborating
with her on everything from her
“Telephone” video to her world tour,
and through her he met photographer
Nick Knight. Determined to learn to
shoot fashion imagery himself, Williams
moved to London to work for Knight’s
then nascent ShowStudio. He eventually
returned to Kanye’s side to work on artAbove: coat, £3,560.
Trousers, £2,445. Boots,
£700. Bandana, £85.
Choker, £460. Right:
Matthew Williams with
model Bella Hadid. She
wears blazer, £2,630.
Dress, £580. Choker,
£460. Bandana, as before.
Opposite: coat, £3,515.
Dress, £310. Chest bag,
£535. Boots, £625.
Bandana and choker,
as before. All Alyx.
For stockist, all pages,
see Vogue Information.
Hair: Ramona Eschbach.
Make-up: Patrick
Glatthaar. Digital
artwork: IMGN StudioMatthew Williams’s Alyx brings a newly
subversive edge to luxury fashion. But the
real coup? The brand’s sense of community,
says Olivia Singer. Styling by Donna
Wallace. Photographs by Thomas LohrINDUSTRIALR EVOLU TION08-19-Spotlight-Alyx.indd 92 31/05/2019 15:01