Women’s History Museum SS2529 Images
There are fashion shows where nondescript clothes that probably could have gone straight to the shop floor are paraded up and down the runway, and there are fashion shows that feel like moments. For all its frenetic energy and the melting pot of people who make up its five boroughs, New York typically gets a bad rap as the fashion capital where commercialism reigns, but to label it as such does it a big disservice. This is the city that birthed Andre Walker, Miguel Adrover, Imitation of Christ, Hood By Air, Luar, Vaquera, and Willy Chavarria, after all.
Joining that heady list of names is Women’s History Museum. Founded by longtime besties Mattie Barringer and Amanda McGowan, the label has been going steady for the best part of a decade and finally has the wider fashion industry waking up and taking notice, thanks in part to a couple of stellar shows across the last two seasons. Their last, for SS25, was dubbed Indestructible Dolls Head and encompassed everything Women’s History Museum is about – namely, the tenacity of the designers’ tight-knit community of friends and collaborators, a wild approach to creativity, and, above all else, a lot of extremely cunty clothes.
With the show staged in a cavernous church on Manhattan’s West Side, models cavorted in front of the holy altar and strutted down a runway hazardously lined with jagged shards of glass, and while more devout members of the space’s real congregation might have been clutching their bibles, the fashion crowd lapped it up. The line-up of clothes utilised cast-off fabrics and collected odds and ends, with miniscule triangle bikinis rendered in long-retired coins and garish wool that had been manipulated to take on the appearance of animal fur. Satin mini skirts and maxi dresses were plastered with gem stones spelling out kitschy ‘Live, Laugh, Love’-esque quotes, and an endless roll of organza became a sweeping, ethereal gown that billowed out behind their wearer as they walked. Mirroring the catwalk, feet were pouring into formidable stilettos stuck all over with fragments of glass, representing the hardships that come from navigating life in the big, bad city and the challenges lived and overcome.
To round it off, a stand-out coat, which closed the show, paid homage to British icon Pete Burns. “We’re obsessed with him, he’s so inspiring to us he actually reminds us of some of our friends, even though we obviously never met him,” says McGowan. Maybe it’s that harsh Northern attitude, like he was never scared to say what he thought, and he was so smart and quick.” In fact, to anyone familiar with Burns’ outlandish persona, acerbic wit, and groundbreaking aesthetic, it’s pretty clear that, were he still alive, he probably would have been pretty into what the brand is putting out into the world, not least because the designers share his droll sense of humour.
“The name basically started as a joke between us when we lived in our first apartment together and shared a closet – it’s crazy to think now about how that was even functional but we made it work. We used to refer to the closet as our archive, or museum, and then it became ‘Women’s History Museum’ when we realised we wanted to start something together” – Mattie Barringer
The designers reveal that, originally, ‘Women’s History Museum’ actually started out as a bit of a joke. “When we lived in our first apartment together we shared a closet and we used to call it our ‘archive’ or ‘museum’,” says Barringer. “When we realised we wanted to do something together, ‘Women’s History Museum’ felt grandiose and funny. We made this long list of possible names but all of them seemed off or like we were trying too hard. So it stuck.” Given their proclivity for incorporating elements of historical dress into their collections – from silky medieval bloomers, to accents inspired by knights in chainmail – actually, the name feels less silly now. And after umming and ahhing about whether they actually wanted to start a fashion line in the first place, they’re now getting deadly serious when it comes to carving their own little niche on the industry landscape.
Hey both! So first of all, can you tell me a bit about what piqued your interest in fashion, like what was the catalyst for your career in the industry?
Mattie Barringer: I don’t know if there was a big catalyst moment for me? Maybe when we met each other? I made clothes in high school and I feel like you [Amanda] did too? But at that age I never felt like I would go into fashion at all. Like, I remember people asking me if I was going to go to fashion school and I was like no way, fashion is too frivolous. It wasn’t until we met and felt something that cumulatively interested us in fashion that we thought okay, maybe we will pursue this.
What kind of clothes did you make in high school?
Mattie Barringer: They were quite patchwork-y, a bit of an assemblage, or collage, that turned into these punkish little outfits.
Amanda McGowan: Mine were very chaotic, a lot of materials coming together. I didn’t even make them for myself, I made them for my little sister. She actually hated them, though [laughs]. Like I would force her to wear them and do photoshoots for photography class, because she looked like a baby Gemma Ward with these big giant eyes. But she was more into soccer and stuff, so she was not into it. She’s come full circle though because last season (SS25) she was like ‘Oh, do you want me to walk in the show? Yeah, I could walk in the show I guess.’ We were like, oh now you want to wear our stuff!
Who or what inspired you in those early days? Did you have any favourite designers or people you looked at as kind of ‘style icons’?
Amanda McGowan: It’s a good question. I don’t know, you know. I think it was more movies and music as opposed to actual designers. I loved Edie Sedgewick and Kurt Cobain. I wasn’t really so aware of fashion in the early 2000s, like I’d read magazines but I was more into what indie film actresses were wearing rather than what was on the runway. I remember being really into [Bret Easton Ellis adaptation] Rules of Attraction in junior high and just thinking Shannyn Sossamon was so cool. And I was really into electroclash, and bands like CSS and Crystal Castles.
“It’d be cool to costume a historical film, definitely. We’re actually both kind of obsessed with Bram Stoker’s Dracula, so that would be an incredible one to do. I love Gothic horror” – Amanda McGowan
What are your favourite movies?
Mattie Barringer: I love The Pillow Book by Peter Greenaway, in fact I like a bunch of Peter Greenaway’s movies, including The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover. The Jean Paul Gaultier costumes in that are incredible.
Amanda McGowan: And I love The Piano and Jane Campion’s movies. Portrait of a Lady, Bright Star. I love the way she does historical movies on very small budgets. She always does such a great job, and the costumes are beautiful.
I can see you costuming a movie! If you could work on looks for a remake, what would it be?
Amanda McGowan: It’d be cool to do a historical film, definitely. We’re actually both kind of obsessed with Bram Stoker’s Dracula, so that would be an incredible one to do. I love Gothic horror.
Mattie Barringer: And also Blade Runner, the original one would be cool, too. The new one wasn’t giving. I feel like with both of those you could go in a lot of different directions.
Big question: where does the name Women’s History Museum come from?
Mattie Barringer: It basically started as a joke between us when we lived in our first apartment together and shared a closet – it’s crazy to think now about how that was even functional but we made it work. We used to refer to the closet as our archive, or museum, and then it became ‘Women’s History Museum’ when we realised we wanted to start something together. Not necessarily a clothing brand, but something. Women’s History Museum felt grandiose and funny. And then when we actually decided we were going to make clothes in, like, 2015, we made this long list of possible names, but all of them seemed off, or like we were trying too hard, or just didn’t make sense. So in the end, we were like ‘Let’s just use the fake name for real.’ So that’s the lore.
Amanda McGowan: And then when we had the name, things stopped feeling like a joke I think. We were really serious about what we were doing with the label.
What is the brand all about?
Amanda McGowan: That is such a big question. I think we’re inspired by and want to create for our friends, our community, and women in general – or people, rather – who express their gender in a rebellious, interesting way. And now the name and how grandiose it sounds makes even more sense, because we feel devoted to fashion – it’s always overlooked [as an art form] and seen as very frivolous, but it’s very important! It’s such an expression of identity.
Tell me about the SS25 show. What was the inspiration behind the collection, what is the ‘Indestructible Doll Head’?
Mattie Barringer: So it’s literally inspired by these antique porcelain dolls which we’re obsessed with. We used them as lots of prints and insignia throughout the show, so we went for that as a title because it felt resonant with other pieces in the collection, too. And we always talk about our projects as both of us coming together in kind of a brain corset, where it’s, like, the strength of both our brains strapped together. So the ‘doll head’ thing also feels like it’s referring to that, too – both our brains being fused together.
Amanda McGowan: We just like the idea of women as dolls – Mattie’s Instagram handle has been ‘Secret Doll Underworld’ for, like, eight years or something. We’re both very doll-centric, and when people say antique dolls are creepy or weird, I feel like we’ve always been like ‘No they’re not! They’re cool’. They’ve been through a lot, and so have we and our community in the past couple years, so I feel like it was also relating to ourselves when we titled the collection Indestructible Doll Head. Following on from our AW24 collection, which explored similar themes, it was an ode to persevering and the sense of triumph you have living and getting through the hardships that come from living in New York.
“We always talk about our projects as both of us coming together in kind of a brain corset, where it’s, like, the strength of both our brains strapped together” – Mattie Barringer
I hate seeing models wobbling down the runway in shoes they can’t walk in, I always feel so bad for them! I loved that you had some formidable heels in your show but chose to send the model out supported by two others. I guess that also feeds into the feeling of being supported by your friends and network. Was this planned beforehand, or something you decided to do on the night?
Amanda McGowan: Yeah, they were some tricky shoes. They were actually inspired by [legendary movie star] Mae West, who was super short. We took shoes from the 20s and 30s and 40s and stacked them on top of chunky platforms, which is what she did to give herself more height. And Maggie, the model who wore them, is a shorter girl too, but she loves being tall. So we kind of configured this very lo-fi fashion technology to make these shoes for her. But when it came to the runway we absolutely could not send her out alone, so the others went out to support her, literally.
As well as your sister, you cast a whole bunch of people from your wider community. Can you tell me a bit about that?
Mattie Barringer: I’d say like 65 per cent of the cast were friends, many of whom have been walking in our shows from day one, or at least close to the beginning. It adds a lot of depth to the show and feels really special because so many people really care about the brand. Like, I was watching the run-through and just started crying because some of the people we’ve known so long and been through so much with. It feels really good to see them wearing our clothes and put so much effort into bringing them to life on the runway.
Amanda McGowan: Another cool, almost full circle moment, came when we cast Ali Michael in the show. She was a big model in the 00s. Her walk coincided with the “Destroy Everything You Touch” [Ladytron] remix. I feel like she’d just started her career when that came out in 2005. So we’d be listening to that and then obsessing over Teen Vogue, which she was always in. I didn’t realise it at the time, but we were probably about the same age too. So it was some weird cosmic coincidence that that song that was so popular at that time was playing when she walked.
Yeah, the soundtrack was actually amazing. I loved hearing some Algebra Suicide in there, as well as that incredible Ladytron remix. Can you tell me if there was any specific meaning to the tracks you included?
Amanda McGowan: So there were a lot of tracks leftover from last season that we wanted to use that went into this one. We worked with the same person on the soundtrack this time around – she’s a respiratory nurse called Amber who lives in Tennessee and isn’t part of the NY scene, but she really gets us and the brand and manages to bring it all to life. And then we have my partner who comes in and collaborates on it, as a lot of the mixing is done live on the day – it’s all happening on the fly. We wanted parts of it to feel emotive and have depth, but also balance that with funny, tongue-in-cheek moments.
“so many amazing designers have done shows in churches. Andre Walker did his first show in a church, Alexander McQueen did a show in a church early in his career. And there’s something almost religious and ceremonial about a fashion show, plus this sense of community or congregation that correlates” – Amanda McGowan
And was there any meaning behind staging the show in a church? And specifically the church you staged it in?
Mattie Barringer: We wanted to use a venue that we hadn’t seen chosen before, which is really hard in New York as it’s difficult to find a space that’s affordable and can accommodate a fashion show – people reuse a lot of the same venues. So we wanted something totally new. We didn’t specifically target it, but I was walking past one day and thought I’d enquire, and it just so happens the church is, like, extremely cool and chill and great to work with. The space is so beautiful and has so much history, and actually historically a lot of underground fashion shows happen in churches.
Amanda McGowan: Yeah, so many amazing designers have done shows in churches. Andre Walker did his first show in a church, Alexander McQueen did a show in a church early in his career. And there’s something almost religious and ceremonial about a fashion show, plus this sense of community or congregation that correlates.
Fashion is playing a game of musical chairs at the moment. Would you be keen to take over a house one day?
Amanda McGowan: Oh totally. I think for me, I’m obsessed with everything Malcolm McLaren and Vivenne Westwood did, so I think it would be incredible to take over Westwood maybe. Although Jesus, maybe it’s too much to take that house over because I don’t know if I think anyone should? Apart from Andreas,I guess. But Vivienne was just so in her own lane, living in a world of her own. Her work is like theatre, it’s beyond fashion, and I think that’s something we really try to do, too. It would be hard to bring anything new or different to it, maybe. Like, it would feel disrespectful.
Mattie Barringer: But then you think about Mugler, who was also such a theatrical designer and built this whole world, and the new iteration, which is so different but really good – although I do feel they could maybe strike a bit more of a balance with the past sometimes. I feel like going to Gaultier would be more cool and chill, even though he’s still alive. Not that I wouldn’t be nervous, but he’s so fun and, like, one of the least scary designers. And he really seems to be championing young designers.
Amanda McGowan: Yeah, and his aesthetic is a lot more eclectic rather than as specific and singular as, say, Mugler and Westwood. I feel like there’s more room to experiment.
Living or dead, who would you love to see wearing your clothes?
Amanda McGowan: Pete Burns would be incredible, he’d look good in everything. You might not have noticed it because it was distorted, but we actually had a print of Pete on the back of one of the last jackets. We’re obsessed with him, he’s so inspiring to us, and he actually reminds us of some of our friends, even though we obviously never met him. Maybe it’s that harsh Northern attitude, like he was never scared to say what he thought, and he was so smart and quick.
Mattie Barringer: Totally. Or what about Marilyn Monroe? I feel like we’d be besties with Marilyn and get on so well in a weird way.
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