Glasgow model reveals what it is like working for Alexander McQueen

Lucia Fairfull, 26, is represented by Model Team Scotland and has been collaborating with high fashion design house Alexander McQueen since the start of the pandemic.

She was given the surprise honour of closing the Spring 2023 Ready-to-Wear show earlier this month, which took place in an inflatable space installed at the Old Royal Naval College.

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Lucia didn’t know she had been chosen to close the show until she arrived at the venue and saw her photo on the board.

She said: “It was a surprise. Maybe other people would have cried or been jumping up and down, and I was really excited, but I didn’t know how to show it at the time.

“I think it was definitely one of my favourite shows so far, and I'm very lucky that I got to wear that dress.”

Lucia explains that her favourite part of working with the legendary fashion house has been watching how the creative process behind each garment unfolds, which she likens to the way she creates her own music.

Lucia said: “It's one thing looking at those clothes on a rack in a shop and thinking, 'wow, that's amazing', but to actually see the whole lead up to that show moment, it just fills you with so much happiness for the designers and for you to be a part of it.

“For me, it's like what I do with music. It's like, a song idea in your head that's written out on paper, which then gets recorded into a demo, to then recording it at a studio, to then making the visuals for it, to then putting it out in the world.

“And it's a very similar kind of process for them, but it's just a completely different thing at the same time.”

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She added: “I started working with McQueen when the music industry was still struggling with the effects of the pandemic.

“So, for me, entering the world of McQueen and seeing what it means to be a creative in a way that I hadn't really experienced before, switched a light on in my head because music became very tricky during that time.

“And there were not really any experiences to inspire much for me, musically. I mean, that I would usually want to write about, but working with [creative director] Sarah Burton, and the whole of McQueen, kind of changed that for me.

“Not just during that period, but forever, because it was quite a dark time for everyone.

“And it just gave me a lot of encouragement at a time when a lot of us didn’t feel any of that.

“It’s been quite a surreal thing.”

Lucia was born in the village of Drymen near Loch Lomond and moved to Glasgow in her teens.

The city has played a big part in shaping Lucia’s approach to making and performing music and her pride in being Scottish shines through a lot of her work.

She said: “I'm very proud to be a part of the Glasgow music scene, and that's something that everybody has out there, at their front doors, you know what I mean?

“Growing up in the countryside was maybe something I didn't appreciate at the time, but being in the city, and being surrounded by everything that I always wanted to be a part of, and becoming a part of it, has definitely helped shaped everything really, everything.

“And I'm inspired by Scotland, and its culture and heritage and history, in general.”

The genre-defying music made by Lucia and the Best Boys has evolved over time, landing somewhere between indie, pop, and rock sounds.

Their songs are punchy and melodic with powerful lyrics written by Lucia that crystallize her experience of growing up in Scotland.

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Lucia and the Best Boys are currently recording their debut album at Black Bay Studios which is located on an island in the Outer Hebrides near Stornoway.

The band are gearing up for their biggest headline gigs yet and will play at the SWG3 warehouse in Glasgow on March 9, 2023.

She said: “We're halfway through recording our first album just now.

“We've been playing some new songs and shows over the last year, but we haven't played many - just because we really wanted to focus on getting this recorded to the best of its ability.”

Lucia is in a place where she feels more sure of her music than ever before, and she is looking forward to releasing her debut album with her band next year.

She said: “I’ve never been more confident and prouder of my music before and I think that the shows coming up will be our best yet, for sure.

“It’s a very big mixture of emotions. It’s exciting, you feel anxious, and sometimes you feel scared thinking about what the reactions might be like.

“But you have to remember, you’re doing this for yourself, as well, and I think that next year is probably going to be our best year yet.”