MAE x SPEZIAL
Multimedia music and fashion brand SPEZIAL are proud to unveil a new collaboration with emergent designer MAE and the Arts University of Bournemouth.
The partnership sees SPEZIAL designer Shahab Notghi fusing his bold visual style with MAE’s hand-crafted clothing, resulting in a collection of limited edition tees, hoodies, sweats and more.
SPEZIAL is an innovative, multi-disciplinary art movement bringing music, fashion and street culture together. The record label and artist entity - Das Spezial - has previously worked with legendary producers such as Daniel Avery and Matthew Herbert, as well as members of Radiohead and Portishead. In tandem, SPEZIAL is committed to incubating new talent across all artforms, and this latest project upholds that mission by bridging the gap between celebrated, established tenets of the fashion world and next season’s brightest and boldest.
In the case of MAE, currently finishing her degree in Textiles at the highly-respected Arts University of Bournemouth, that means working with 100% organic, ethically-sourced materials from legendary textile emporium The Cloth Shop. Since 1982 the London institution has provided the leaders of the fashion world — Alexander McQueen and Vivienne Westwood to name but two — with the finest fabrics for their creations.
“Me and Shab have known each other for a few years now,” says Griffin, “and we both knew we would work with each other at some point. As soon as he showed me drafts of the SPEZIAL concept I was onboard, and we literally squashed the first collection in 24 hours. All the Acrylic Minds x SPEZIAL work we have done has been created on a three-second rule of decisions. We don’t want to over-think anything with this project, and so far it’s working really well.”
From the Stage 1 ‘Basic’ Collection through to Stage 2’s ‘Renaissance’ and on to Stage 3, when MAE’s work with The Cloth Shop materials will be ready for exhibition, the focus is on nurturing UK creative talent on tangible projects by partnering with institutions that share the SPEZIAL vision.
Interview By Oli Warkwick for SPEZIAL Artist Series