Seeing as it's three days after the one year anniversary of the tragic death of Lee Alexander Mcqueen, I thought the second post on this blog should be entirely dedicated to him and his incredibly breathtaking creations. He was one of the most iconic, imaginative, and inspirational designers of the decade and I'm sure he will live on and continue to be for decades to come.. He turned heads and made dreams become reality. He first planted his foot onto the ground of fashion while working as head designer for fashion house Givenchy for five years before founding his own Alexander Mcqueen and McQ labels. His inventive, avante-garde, and some say "over the top" designs and provocative runway shows quickly became a celebrity-favourite with clients including Sarah Jessica Parker, Peneople Cruz, Kate Moss, Nicole Kidman, David Bowie, Bjork, Gwen Stefani, and of course the stylist and icon Isabella Blow who purchased his entire graduate collection. To this day, he is worn by countless celebrities including Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Victoria Beckham, Cate Blanchett, Lindsay Lohan, Sandra Bullock, Katie Holmes, and even the first lady Michelle Obama. He was named British Designer of the Year four times in a row and will always be remembered as the enfant terrible, a visionary who never lost his sense of child-like wonder and curiosity, whose appetite remained unchecked by commercial ambitions - an artist in every sense of the word.
Here are some of my favorite and most memorable designs of his..
'Birds' Spring/Summer 2001 RTW : The audience is seated around a large mirrored box meant to evoke the twisted and troubled setting of a mental asylum, the models walk in circles inside trying to reach out to the audience from inside the glass cube that imprisons each of them. Most of them are covered in bandages and suggestive nurses wear. Added to the eerie scene are taxidermy birds meant to look like they are swooping down and attacking the beautiful models à la Hitchcock.
Spring/Summer 2003 RTW : Underwater scenes are projected in a Blair Witch-like forest atmosphere. Pirates, and drowned maidens make their way down the catwalk as if they had been shipwrecked on a far-off island away from civilization. The aestethic quickly changes as it becomes evident that the rainforest was a large inspiration of this collection as the toned down browns, mauves, cremes, and gauzy-like gowns turn into birds of paradise colored flouncy chiffon skirts under gender-bending impeccably tailored almost Shakespearean jackets.
Fall 2003 RTW : A large glass wind tunnel on the edge of a frozen tundra.. Sound odd? Not to Alexander Mcqueen. "I wanted it to be like a nomadic journey across the tundra." He stated. And it was just that as the models walked down the runway in heavily east-meets-west influenced garments including gorgeous fur coats that made the women look like Russian dolls making there way through a blizzard. The mood quickly changes to a more barbaric almost war-stricken time, the women now wearing heavy metal plated gowns insinuating they were in the midst of a battle for their lives as they all looked almost samurai-esque. This is also one of the first appearances of one of Lee's all-time favorite prints that will forever remind the public of him, Houndstooth. The show ends with a model walking through the wind tunnel in a skin-tight leather bodysuit dragging a 20-foot-kimono-like parachute into the eye of the snowstorm.
Fall 2004 RTW: When the audience started to file-in to the London venue for his Fall 2004 RTW collection they were met, to their surprise, with a plain white runway. Where were the theatrics? The projections? The scenery? The provocative runway appeal that he was now known for was missing. A rebirth of the Mcqueen label? That was exactly what his intention was, to strip away all the over-produced, intense, presentation and to just "focus purely on design." The women somberly took the runway in a muted color palette mostly made up of jersey and silk. One of Mcqueens most-well-known gowns was from this collection the simple, yet stunning silhouette of this floor-sweeping Grecian-style gown with crisscross bodice quickly became a celebrity-favorite and has been reworked many times. As the collection moved from day to eveningwear the tone dramatically changed to conceptually futuristic. Unlike his other shows, the shock value lied purely in the designs as the women looked like Tudor-esque alien queens from the 23rd century.
Spring/Summer 2005 RTW : The models stand still, positioned strategically on his giant chessboard. He chose his most popular silhouettes reworked in ways that made them seem almost brand new to the eye.. well, because they were. He reinvented what he already had executed so well. He revisited his past collections including the Russian influence of his Fall 2003 RTW collection adding more of a child-like feel with carousel print skirts, his Spring/Summer 2000 RTW collection which included rigid molded corsets made to resemble a full-body cast referencing his hospital/asylum theme this time adding wig elements to the bottom of the pronounced structure of the skirt. His popular crisscross bodice from the previous Fall/Winter 2004 collection returned this time replaced with a younger, flouncier, more whimsical tulle puff above-the-knee skirt. The same basic concepts, but with a totally different appeal.
Spring/Summer 2006 RTW : Missing from the show once again were the over-produced theatrics that everyone has come to expect at a Mcqueen show. This time he had moved in a more everyday wearable direction. The shock value was still present as the women took the runway in sheer, thin, see-through silk and chiffon, and low-cut bust lines meant to leave little to the imagination. By now, Lee knew that his customers were daring, and unique women who loved to show skin and be a force to be reckoned with. The theme changed as the dresses took on a more Grecian-inspired twist as the models made their way down the runway in little dresses that suggested they would be a gentleman's favorite in ancient Greece. This is also the first and only few glimpses we had of swimwear introduced into his collections, as the models looked like they would be lounging pool-side on some far off planet, but sadly it was short-lived.
(I absolutely loved the swimwear, and really wish he had done more in his collections.)
Spring/Summer 2007 RTW : An enormous dusty chandelier hangs high above a live orchestra placed in the middle of a circular runway. The models traversed down the runway in elaborate pieces that are meant to remind you of the romanticism of days past. The floral gowns were exceptionally executed and are prime examples of his ready-to-wear with couture sensability skills. A shear lace applique dress from this collection once again inspired Lady Gaga who wore something very similar for appearances and performances. There were also more modern-day wearable pieces that stood-out to the critics and spectators which in return, made this one of his best collections to date. (And one of my all-time favorites, it's exceptionally hard to pick just 4.)
Fall/Winter 2007 RTW : The theme of witchcraft came to life on the runway as the models stomped around a pentagram traced in red inside a black-sand circle, with an inverted pyramid hanging high above. The show starts, a macabre film- of naked women, decaying skulls, swarming locusts, and blood and fire plays above the models' heads. The inspiration behind this collection spurred from Mcqueen discovering that his mother's bloodline dated as far back as the Salem witch-hunts of the 17th century, and that one of her ancestors was actually prosecuted. The themes of paganism, religious prosecution, witchcraft, and hell played on the dark and angry side of Lee's creativity. Making a return appearance are his full-body casts this time rendered in chocolate brown made to look as if the models have been encased in bark, trapped forever. He also referenced links between ancient Egypt and folk culture in the early British New World which can be seen in his golden statuette almost sarcophagi looking bodysuit that was most recently seen on Lady Gaga in a promo image for her second album, The Fame Monster. (Another one of my all-time favorite collections!)
Spring/Summer 2008 RTW : This collection was a tribute to his late mentor and dear friend and icon Isabella Blow the very woman who discovered him, and purchased his entire graduate collection propelling his career from student rack to couture house. This collection also featured gorgeous Phillip Treacy headgear-in their most extreme manifestations. (A current favorite of Lady Gaga.) He referenced past collections including his Japanese-themed couture collection he designed for fashion house Givenchy. More bird influences were seen in his garments this time taking a more delicate side-instead of aggressive, bringing back the birds of paradise feathers and bright color palette.
Spring/Summer 2009 RTW : Mcqueen ; the environmentalist was the story for this collection, the runway was surrounded by a zoo of stuffed endangered animals while a video projection of the earth revolving played above the heads' of the audience. It was very apparent that he was inspired by Charles Darwin's Theory Of Evolution as well as the destructive force of mans industrialization and the toll it's taking on the earth. The collection consisted mostly of graphic printed leggings, shifts, and more accessible shapes. The dresses took on a life of their own appearing to look like living organisms, some of the prints even resembling spinal chords and exoskeletons. (Another one of my favorites!)
Fall/Winter 2009 RTW : This collection included a patchwork of references from his past collections as well as his predecessors as he took the Christian Dior plain Houndstooth print, and the classic Chanel tweed suit and made them his own. Philip Treacy once again supplied outrageous head-gear for the models as they appeared on the catwalk with half-comical, half-disturbing enormous black painted lips that some argued looked "ugly and misogynistic" while others were "energized by the couture-level drama" that he had brought to life in front of them. During points of the show, it seemed that Lee had become quite humorous in his approach as some of the garments looked to be constructed of trash bags with headgear consisting of aluminum cans wrapped in plastic. Lady Gaga chose to wear one of these creations for an editorial in a Japanese magazine.
Spring/Summer 2010 RTW : Entitled "Plato's Atlantis" the show was streamed on fashion photographer Nick Knight's website SHOWstudio.com and pretty much changed the face of fashion as nowadays almost most of the runway shows are streamed live on the internet. Mcqueen also teamed up with one of his good friends and loyal fans Lady Gaga when he agreed to premiere her new single at the end of the show, this caused so many people to tune in and ultimately made this collection well-renowned across the world. Enormous robotic arms moved back and forth filming the women for the massive audience intently watching on their computers at home. The giant screen played a video of model Raquel Zimmermann writhing about on the sand while snakes slithered about her. The models continued to strut down the runway dressed as a cross between a "snake" and an "alien" the optical graphic prints resembling a snakes skin. One of the strongest features of this collection were the out-of-this-world and breathtaking footwear, which made headlines across the country for their look as well as towering height measuring twelve-inches. Lady Gaga followed suit and supported her great friend, by donning most of these garments and accessories mostly seen in her music video for Bad Romance. Sadly, this would be the last bow Lee Alexander Mcqueen would ever take...
Fall 2010 RTW : At the time of Lee's untimely death this collection was only 80% finished. His right hand, and now newly named creative director of the label, Sarah Burton and the Mcqueen team completed it all keeping in mind how Lee would of wanted it done. It was shown in a very intimate, hushed, manor in a house in Paris, only a very certain few were invited and allowed in to view the very last collection touched by the hands of the phenomenal designer. The collection was inspired by royalty during the Renaissance and 16th century architecture found in tapestries that you would find somewhere in a museum's archives. Angels and Devils also played a major role in this collection which made some people ponder how eerie it was that this was the last collection he would ever do, and causing them to maybe wonder where he had ended up in the afterlife.
Spring 2011 RTW : Sarah Burton continued to wow the critics and customers with her Spring 2011 collection directly inspired by Mother Nature. Gone was the dark, twisted scenery and vibe of the familiar Mcqueen show. The runway was covered in pavement and grass, there were trees with beautiful foilage surrounding the graceful models as they made their way down the catwalk. They began as just blank white canvas but while the show continued on they began to be almost consumed by Mother Nature herself, being wrapped in masses of leaves, feathers, and butterfly wings. They even started to take on an animalistic feel as one dress looked like an unfolding sea anemone. Lady Gaga chose two of these gowns for her editorial in the the current issue of VOGUE.
Now, I couldn't leave out Menswear so here are some of my faves...
(All photos courtesy of Style.com)
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