Benaissa
Majeri

‘It’s about Scotland, life and death, nature, destruction, and my teenage years.’ An eclectic mix defines Benaissa Majeri’s final collection, where the fashion print graduate used the time in the first lockdown to find inspiration in her home and her past. A recipient of the British Fashion Council scholarship, Benaissa explains: ‘It’s an identity thing. I’m a trans woman, so it’s trying to discover my identity throughout my teenage years but never really being able to hit the nail on the head.’ The result is a repurposing of that experience which echoes the archetypes of people she tried, but failed, to be – all while honouring her heritage.

Some looks, decorated with a myriad of scoubidou strings forming Celtic knots, recall the ‘cool kids,’ while another serves as a chic upgrade of a jacket worn by a majority of the Ned subculture she tried to be a part of. The ethos of connecting with her background worked in tandem with the objective of a completely sustainable collection. ‘A lot of that ethical aspect has been about community – I worked with a lace company from my hometown and fine artists in Glasgow for my accessories.’ As for those archetypes she couldn’t quite be before, Benaissa asserts ‘I see myself in all of these characters, I am all of them now.’ 

Lana Kozak, BA Fashion Journalism
@lana_kozak