Wrighton was born on 25 May 1993 in Watford, Hertfordshire, to a Welsh father and English mother. He grew up in the suburbs of London with an older brother, and showed great interest in Art from an early age.

 

In 2011, Wrighton began his studies at Central Saint Martins in London, England.

 

In 2014, Wrighton launched ebaE, an online shop and magazine oriented towards young people.

 

Throughout his studies, he worked as a photographic collaborator with designer Charles Jeffrey.

 

Wrighton graduated in 2016, and his final project The Maul, an online shop and interactive video game

was exhibited at the London Design Festival.

 

 

Fashion career

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In June 2017, Wrighton moved to Johannesburg, South Africa, to live with stylist Ib Kamara and photographer

Kristin-Lee Moolman. The three worked on ‘Soft Criminal,’ a body of experimental styling imagery made

alongside a 22-look collection of costumes. In September 2018, Wrighton, Kamara and Moolman showed Soft

Criminal at Red Hook Labs in Brooklyn, New York.

 

Wrighton has also supported Kamara’s styling work on commercial jobs for Beyoncé, Madonna, Rihanna,

Pirelli and Louis Vuitton.

 

In February 2019, he showed “In The Pines: The Ballad of Meredith Hunter,” his Autumn/Winter 2019 collection

with Fashion East, on the London Fashion Week schedule. Inspired by the 50th anniversary of the Altamont

Speedway Free Festival, the 12-look collection explored the contradictions within Americana, the failures of the

counter-culture movement, natural disaster and police brutality.

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In March 2019, Wrighton moved into the Dazed x Design District studio space in North Greenwich.

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In September 2019, he showed “I’m Slowly Turning Into You: A Virtual Unreality,” his Spring/Summer 2020 collection at London Fashion Week. Described by office magazine as “Chaotic Evil,” the 15-look collection was inspired by the story of Jessi Slaughter, exploring themes of virtual reality, cyber-bullying, Lolita tropes, digital persona, and rebirth.

 

In February 2020, he presented his final Autumn/Winter 2020 collection “A Day At The Maul” at Fashion East’s first co-ed fashion show. The show was a remake of his 2016 final graduate project, exploring themes of excessive consumption, economic depression, youth revolt and the post-apocalypse, concluding his ‘American Trilogy’ series of fashion shows. 

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Through 2020, Wrighton worked on special projects with Browns and Maison Margiela, and in November 2020, was invited by Gucci to produce a film for Guccifest. Co-directing with digital artist Zach Beech, the pair created 'The Maul,' a short film imitating a trailer to a video game that doesn't exist, including original 3D assets made through photogrammetry scanning in London. The film acted as another chapter in the ever evolving form of Wrighton's parallel universe centred around his imaginary shopping mall. The film was soundtracked by M. Henry G-C, a longtime collaborator of Wrighton's.

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In September 2021, Wrighton was appointed the role of Art Director of Dazed magazine, working closely

alongside Editor-In-Chief Ibrahim Kamara and Executive Editorial Director Lynette Nylander. His debut issue

included a cover story featuring Rihanna shot by Rafael Pavarotti.

 

Style

 

Wrighton is primarily known for his use of knitwear and reappropriation of contemporary detritus into

costume, in particular using keyboard keys, hair clips, guitar plectrums and jingle bells in his work. A

recurring figure through his work is his use of the Bunny Rabbit motif, a nod to his childhood pet rabbit,

Bazil. His trademark knit bunny ear balaclava was worn by Dua Lipa on the cover of The Face magazine

in 2019. 

 

Wrighton is known for accessible and conservative shapes and silhouettes, reimagined and rendered in

extremely intricate techniques and motifs. Simple knit pieces are often undermined by a corrupt

materiality. He is known to use vivid world building and narrative within his work, telling profound stories

through dress and costume.

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Recurring themes in Wrighton's work explore structures and abuses of power, virtuality in fashion,

conspicuous consumption and the impact of fast fashion on the environment, alongside do-it-yourself

maker movements and crafting in the apocalypse, culminating in a body of work that he describes as 

"touching in the age of touchscreens."

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Wrighton contrasts the grand scale of nature with an introspective view of virtuality, and the pioneering genius of mans spirit with the deviance of the human mind. Wrighton cites the work of Bob Dylan, John Dos Passos, and Elizabeth Holmes as inspirations.

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Personal Life

 

Wrighton lives in Watford with his family and two cats.