August 11th, 2023 - By Storm Nguyen
DAn MClean’s 7:20
TAKE ME AWAY RUNWAY Collection teleports
Seattle into Fashion Euphoria
Dubbed Seattle’s “Bootlegger”, Fashion Designer Dan McLean has garnered notoriety as the visionary with a talent for breathing new life into pre-existing clothing items. After graduating from Seattle Central College in 2019, McLean steadily drew in a customer demographic that appreciates the beauty in peculiar concepts and supports the usage of sustainable production methods. McLean’s clients can be seen wearing a variety of pieces ranging from thrifted designer accessories and bags modified with a “Dan McLean touch” to carefully crafted original pieces designed for runway collections. For decades, many individuals ironically deemed the rainy city of Seattle to be a “fashion desert” for its lack of imaginative spark in comparison to fashion giants such as New York City. The Dan McLean philosophy seeks to challenge this stigma clouding Seattle’s fashion scene by uniting lovers of clothes and environmentalists under one roof through the form of Runway shows. With two successful productions secured under her belt, McLean pushed the boundaries even further with the 7:20:TAKE ME AWAY Runway collection which pulled references from Pierre Cardin’s 60s Space-Age fashion aesthetic while remaining true to McLean’s ghoulish perspective on fashion. After pulling off a hauntingly cohesive presentation amidst an art gallery in the historic Coliseum Theater, how exactly did this designer’s vision come to life? Here is a glimpse at the process of Dan McLean’s latest Runway masterpiece.
Coming off an adrenaline high from the previous runway (2:14:ENJOY THE SHOW) this past February; McLean was still unsure of the direction she was heading with 7:20:TAKE ME AWAY. While running an errand with her partner Sharnae St. Clair, they passed by the Coliseum Theater nestled in the heart of Downtown Seattle, previously home to a chain store of Banana Republic until 2020. In a lighthearted conversation, McLean mentions the Theater being a “dream venue” for future shows, not thinking too much of the comment nor believing it would come to fruition just a few months later. With enthusiasm, everything began to fall into place, and on May 22nd, 2023; the festivities began with two model castings for the highly-anticipated collection. “Casting is not just about finding models but to boost the confidence of the city. I’m using this opportunity as a way to make people feel included and a fun uplifting experience that brings positive energy to the Seattle fashion scene.” The designer drew over 150 interested candidates making the casting process a rather tough decision for Dan’s panelists. Tasked with narrowing down the massive turnout of hopefuls to a small group of 10, McLean trusted these panelists to capture her vision. “I take little to no part in the model selection process. I really like to have a variety of humans on the panel with different body shapes, heights, and genders. I want them to choose who they want to see on the runway. I design my collections with every model as a muse. Every look is intentionally crafted with their personality, aesthetic, and body shape in mind.”
Model and Panelist Jess Hamilton emphasizes McLean “can make anything for anybody, whatever it may be while still remaining true to a dark and strange ghoul-ish aesthetic.” For the model hopefuls, this meant a genuine expression of personality was a key factor in being selected. The philosophy of Dan McLean accentuates the quirkiness of one’s inner being that is oftentimes frowned upon by a larger general audience. McLean thus aims to create a space where the freak can limitlessly fly with no boundaries. In response to the question “What is something you’re looking for during this casting call?” Lead Hairstylist and Panelist Brittanee Wright vocalize “Dan is very much someone who wants unique (all shapes and sizes), Walks can be taught so the most important thing we are looking for are those who come as they are. This is a nerve-wracking process but those who can overcome this fear and truly bring themselves out are who we are looking for.”
Hairstylist Brittanee Wright working on Model Zerek backstage at Dan McLean’s 7:20 TAKE ME AWAY RUNWAY on July 20th.
Photo by: Storm Nguyen
Model Jess Hamilton being dressed in her first look backstage at Dan McLean’s 7:20 TAKE ME AWAY RUNWAY on July 20th.
Photo by: Storm Nguyen
Once the selection process was concluded, McLean took a couple of weeks to rest in preparation for the journey that was to come as she typically starts designing a month ahead of the projected show date. During this time, McLean emphasizes family time and grounding herself in a way that energizes her spirit as most days/nights during show season are often occupied with a swarm of ideas and continuous sewing.
At the beginning of conceptualization, McLean relies on her gut feeling and intuition, trusting that her emotion will guide her through this process. At the very end of the road, she is decisive on if something feels in alignment with what she wants. “I don’t like to second-guess myself, I think that I end up knowing whether I resonate with something or not even after I consult with a series of people for feedback.”Storytelling is a huge component in a McLean production and a story in Dan’s eyes is not always linear. They come piece by piece and the finishing touches somehow miraculously mesh together in harmony.
“At the beginning of my process, I was imagining the collection to be mainly black with accents of silver but it has become the opposite. I recall a time when I interned with a clothing company during school and a manufacturer appeared one day with a 50-yard roll of this strange silver fabric. They were going to scrap it so I was asked if I wanted to buy it and I immediately said yes. I haven’t had much use for it and it's been sitting in my studio for over 4 years now I never really found a purpose for it until I started using it for one piece in this collection. From there, I started finding myself subconsciously incorporating this fabric into more looks. Silver has become the dominant color for this collection and I find this surprising because I mainly only use black.”
Approximately a month after initial castings were held, on July 1st, 2023, and July 15th, 2023, the Model fittings for the show were conducted. During this stage, a lot of emphasis is placed on collaboration. While Dan has a vision for what she sees in her head; the feedback of her models is necessary to the overall process. McLean places less emphasis on sketching/illustration during this process and more on building interpersonal relationships because models act as a muse. Looks are originally crafted with the model’s personality in mind but are revised along the way as McLean continues to develop a personal relationship with them.
Seattle Ballroom Artist and Drag Queen D’Mon, who was selected through the casting process echoes this attribute of Dan.“I love getting to know Dan and enjoy seeing how she bases each look on each model. It’s like being seen as a personal muse rather than simply modeling clothes. Dan has come out to multiple of my shows and has asked me many questions about my personal style of drag/art and has built my looks off of that. She has made sure I’ve felt comfortable throughout this entire process.”
After seeing one of D’Mon’s shows, McLean proceeded to scrap the initial look she had planned for the Muse. “D’Mon showcases a body, legs, and butt moment in a performance and I didn’t know that before going to a show. That was something I felt I needed to know about them. After seeing a show, I immediately threw out the look I had planned and I ended up putting D’Mon in this black thong bodysuit with deep cuts.”
It is important to McLean that after a show, models feel naturally compelled to remain in touch and feel part of the community-driven space that she is wanting to build. McLean expresses “There’s a lot that goes on during the production of a runway and it’s exciting to be in an artistic environment that brings positive energy into the community and I feel that’s something people want to be a part of, I know I would.”
On the production side, crew members were extremely integral to the overall success of the 7:20 show. Each component of the show ranging from stage direction, makeup/hair, styling, and photography were spearheaded by an appointed “leader” that enlisted their team of helpers to ensure the process goes smoothly. This system was newly implemented and impactful in ensuring Dan can focus on perfecting the quality and cohesion of her collection after learning it was quite difficult to manage everything on her own in the two previous productions.
One of these crew members: Erica Carraway acted as McLean’s Stage Director for the 7:20 production, and had a duty to remain attentive toward executing Dan’s overall vision. With the Coliseum Theater’s complex and rather massive lay-out, Carraway envisioned McLean’s models as Aliens that have landed on earth with a curiosity of who they’re approaching/exploring while they walk through the audience who act as “abnormal” in the Aliens’ eyes. Carraway explains, “We used McLean’s two muses who start the show as Leaders of the Motherboard who emerge to check the scene and make sure it’s appropriate for the rest of the models to come out.” Carraway, who is a close friend of McLean, has worked on all three shows to date and mentions she was given more creative freedom to direct McLean’s vision. “Me and Dan read each other’s minds, it’s kind of creepy. She’ll be thinking something and I’ll say it. She’s a little more timid to say it and I’m more confident in saying it which is why she’s put me in charge of stage direction.”
Models Jess Hamilton and Ariam Tedla open the 7:20 TAKE ME AWAY Runway with a bang as the "Leaders of Aliens". Photo by: Itzel Luccas
July 20th, 2023 marked the final show day in which McLean felt a mixture of being overwhelmed by the amount of support that showed up and also the immediate urge to start producing another show. With a run-time of almost 20 minutes and 24 looks, the audience was in for quite the spectacular assortment of looks that challenged McLean to expand her artistic boundaries and take risks with her design skills.
The amount of interaction from guests was a source of excitement for Dan, as she commented with a laugh, “It was all the human interaction I’ll need for a while!”. Regardless, there is something she truly appreciates about the chaos of it all as the next several days after a show are often accompanied by rest and sleeping. While this is something she appreciates that she can have, the celebration after a show feels unreal and something she thrives on is seeing the audience’s reactions.
McLean’s runway audience is extremely special and accommodating to every model who is part of the show. Zerek was the first Deaf model cast in one of her shows. Throughout the process, McLean ensured Zerek had the highest level of comfortability and provided accommodations for him including hiring ASL translators who accompanied Zerek leading up to the show. Zerek’s family members were in attendance on the final show date and mentioned to McLean how moving it was to see Zerek walk down the runway. Noticeably each time Zerek approached the catwalk, the audience increasingly took notice and adjusted their cheers to silent applause. This detail of the show truly emphasized the space McLean strives to foster and ultimately provide.
With the show’s conclusion, Dan McLean felt there was nothing necessarily detrimental to the show’s overall creation. Reflecting on her own emotional and career growth, she notices a lighter theme to this year’s 7:20 TAKE ME AWAY show due in part to the amount of support she has in her partner Sharnae St Clair, her manager Sara Tam and the growing community of creatives involved that she has around her in comparison to her very first show (7:20:DAN) a year ago. In just a year, McLean has solidified a solid community of other artists and clients around her that reflect a beacon of light and the continuous growth remains something that gives her strength as she continues on her journey.
McLean is ecstatic her clients are eager to purchase these new pieces and hopes to see them be worn to her next runway launch: the 2:14:I DO show in February 2024. Although there are still 6 months in between her next big runway show, McLean still has a plethora of exciting opportunities in her pocket with her first bootleg runway collection presenting on August 12th, 2023 in collaboration with community organization 206Zulu in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Hip-Hop and an all denim runway collection in collaboration with her partner Sharnae, to be presented at Seattle’s annual Bumbershoot Arts festival on September 2nd and 3rd.
