Alejandro Palomo is making Spanish fashion interesting and daring again. His youth, psycho-romantic imagery and solid training are contributing to lifting the name of Spain high in the world of fashion.
We meet Alejandro Palomo (Posadas, Córdoba, 1992) freshly landed from Paris, where he showed his spring / summer 2020 collection. “When I’m in Paris I feel very fulfilled. It’s like being at the heart of the fashion business, I feel my work makes perfect sense. It’s a place that always has a good response to my proposals, where the circle is closed”.
Like London, Milan and New York, Paris is the brain and the heart of fashion, a place where there is a real structure that, besides making people dream, creates jobs. “There’s always been fashion in Paris, hence the culture they have now. It’s a real trade, and not something distant. Unfortunately, we don't have such a big industry here,” he says.
The Madrid Fashion Week, born 34 years ago in a circus tent at Plaza de Colón, is still striving to grow and evolve. Palomo has something to say about this: “Madrid is an incredible city and many international fashion editors still aren’t aware of it. If they came here, they would have wonderful time. We need more thought-out events—parties, dinners, presentations in unique locations. The fashion week has to be much more integrated in the city”.
Alejandro Palomo, the great man after the great character. © Mario G. Sánchez
Pompeii is the name of Palomo Spain’s new collection, the legendary city buried under the ashes of the Vesuvius eruption in AD 79. Devastated, but never forgotten. “This collection began with the idea that clothes should be worn more, that garments should have a history that becomes a part of you. People wearing the clothes of this collection are like people from antiquity who suddenly wake up and find themselves in the middle of a psychedelic rave. I really like the contrast between the natural and the artificial. ”
About the spark that ignites his creativity, which he compares to a love crush that turns one’s life upside down, the Posadas-born designer says that "it has to be an intuitive moment reflecting something personal." And he continues: “For something to make sense, it has to say something about my history in fashion: where we find ourselves each season, how we feel, how we want the brand to evolve, a context, a trip, an anecdote.”
“Madrid is an incredible city and many international fashion editors still aren’t aware of it"
Listening to this young designer, who will soon begin recording the third season of the TV show Maestros de la costura, is listening to greatness. “I realized that over the past year it was all me, me, me. But not anymore. I now have a great team that supports my vision and speaks my language. We are many and we all seek perfection,” he says. In that team, of course, there is his parents: “They’ve always had faith that this would happen. My father is just as crazy as I am, and from the beginning he wanted more and more.” (Laughs)
Palomo Spain’s success has allowed Alejandro to work for artists such as Rosalía, Beyoncé or La Veneno, but... Is the turnover reasonable? Can Alejandro live off his collections? “I still cannot say for sure. I have a business that is growing and functioning every day. Starting a firm being young is very complicated. Sometimes it takes the life out of me, but it is what I want to do.”
