Alexander McQueen, a revolutionary designer, innovated the fashion world with iconic clothing, and with his shows that were a great spectacle.
The English brand Alexander McQueen was founded in 1992 by iconic stylist Lee Alexander McQueen. And soon, the brand became known mainly for the innovative clothes with perfect fit. In addition to its impactful parades. In short, the brand revolutionized the fashion world, showing that clothes can also be used as a form of cultural and political expression.
Alexander McQueen was born and raised in the East End, London. At the age of 16, he left school to become a tailor’s apprentice on Saville Row, considered as the most celebrated street in the world’s tailoring shop. This greatly influenced the structure of his clothes, which he moved between the traditional and the modern.
Then, in the year 1990, after completing a master’s degree at Saint Martins, McQueen began to combine tailoring techniques with a style inspired by the streets of London. This eventually became his trademark. In fact, the designer has already caught the attention of big fashion players right in his graduation show.
Like Isabella Blow, the legendary fashion editor, who bought McQueen’s entire collection and even convinced the designer to use only her middle name, taking the first name that was Lee.
Finally, during his career, McQueen became one of the most talented and iconoclastic designers, thanks to his clothes that displayed an impeccable tailoring, with small doses of humor and rebellion.
Thus, in 2003, the designer received from Queen Elizabeth the knight medal as a thank you for her contribution to the British fashion. However, in 2010, Alexander McQueen was found dead, ending the stylist’s brilliant career.
Alexander McQueen: biography
Lee Alexander McQueen was born on March 17, 1969, in London. From humble beginnings, he was the son of Ronald McQueen, a taxi driver, and Joyce McQueen. He was the youngest of six children. According to McQueen, he started drawing a dress on the wall when he was still 3 years old. By age 15, she used to make dresses for her three sisters, to help parents with expenses.
Thus, at the age of 16, he dropped out of school and began working as a tailor’s apprentice at London’s Anderson & Sheppard. Where I made suits bespoke for celebrities, such as Prince Charles and Mikhail Gorbachev. Soon after, he began to work with costumes of plays, where he worked on creating the pieces for the classic “Les Misérables”.
Due to her great talent, even without having finished her studies, Alexander McQueen got a spot in the room of the famous Saint Martins teacher, Louise Wilson who was known for discovering new talents.
Finally, after completing his master’s degree, McQueen launched his own women’s clothing brand in 1992, where he presented his collection Jack the Ripper Stalks Histims at the graduation show. However, before graduating worked with Japanese fashion designer Koji Tatsuno in London. And later, the designer Romeo Gigli in Italy.
However, his graduation show was a great success, catching the attention of big names in fashion, such as Isabella Blow, for example. He bought the entire collection and became a great defender and friend of Alexander McQueen. In addition, the great highlight of his collection was to the bumster pants, with the very low waist, drawing the attention of the media.
The Brilliant Career of Alexander McQueen
The designer said that he understood himself as gay when he was still 6 years old and came out to his parents at 18. Then, in the year 2000, in a ceremony on a yacht in Ibiza, Alexander McQueen married the documentary filmmaker George Forsyth, with model Kate Moss as godmother. However, marriage was not official, because at the time the union between people of the same sex was not legal in Spain.
In addition, in 1994, Alexander McQueen revolutionized fashion by holding the show entitled The Birds, in honor of Alfred Hitchcock. However, for the parade, McQueen cloistered the public and the press in a small warehouse all closed, to the sound of birds and car accidents. A real scenario of terror. But as soon as the parade began, the impact was great, impressing everyone present there.
Subsequently, the Highland Rape parade (“riteland rape”) was misinterpreted by critics. Because the models paraded with torn and covered in fake blooded, they believed it was a violation of women. However, it was a protest against England’s invasion of Scotland. In the end, the show made McQueen become a world-class designer.
In 1996, the designer was hired as creative director of the French brand Givenchy, where he remained until 2001. However, it was a very troubled period for the designer. In addition to working at Givenchy, he also took care of his own brand, Alexander McQueen. In addition, the designer did not have creative freedom, which did not please him very much.
Between 1996 and 1997, he worked on the costume of the David Bowie tour. Already in 1997, I worked on the cover of the album Homogenic, by Bjork.
Iconic parades
Subsequently, in 2000, its brand became part of Gucci’s portfolio, which bought 51% of the Alexander McQueen brand shares, keeping the designer in creative control. The brand has expanded to New York, London, Milan, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Achieving an incredible success.
In addition, McQueen was voted the best fashion designer in Britain, receiving the Bristish Designer of the Year award, awarded by the CFDA, in 1996, 1997, 2001 and in 2003.
In addition, Alexander McQueen had as a trademark audacious designs, with clothes that had characteristics that went from romantic to dark. In addition to having dark colors combined with grotesque and violent elements, with touches inspired by the style of the Victorian Era.
Thus, the Alexander McQueen brand was known for the dramatic style and originality in the construction of clothes, working with the opposites between life and death, light and darkness, melancholy and beauty. As a result, it surprised the public with shoulders of refurbished coats, worn fabrics combined with haute couture, iconic dresses, among others.
Thanks to his love of theater, McQueen’s parades were a true dramatic spectacle with a narrative that challenged the formula of the catwalks. As in 2005, for example, when the designer turned the models into chess pieces. The game symbolized the rivalry between East and West, as well as being inspired by the Harry Potter scenes.
Finally, the designer’s shows have always been interesting and controversial. Subsequently, the brand was expanded, starting to produce men’s collections, perfumes and accessories. In addition to a brand with more affordable prices, called McQ.
Death of Alexander McQueen
In 2007, McQueen is extremely shaken by the suicide of Isabella Blow. As a tribute to his friend, he dedicates to his spring collection.
In addition, in 2009, his collection, Plato’s Atlantis, was inspired by the origin of the species (Charles Darwin), where it mixed past and future. With women with dresses with the appearance of jellyfish and armadry model shoes, with 25 cm. Meanwhile, the background showed images of Brazilian Raquel Zimmermann naked and surrounded by snakes.
However, on February 11, 2010, the designer’s employees find him dead at his home after McQueeen committed suicide at the age of 40 by hanging himself in the closet. Nine days earlier, his mother Joyce had died of cancer.
For McQueen, Joyce was his best friend and business partner. It was she who did all the historical research for the construction of the pieces. In addition, the stylist had already been suffering from depression, anxiety and insomnia. He was even a deal with psychiatrist Stephen Pereira, who said that the designer felt very pressured by his work. Thus, on the day of his death, he had consumed cocaine, tranquilizers and sleeping pills.
On March 9, 2010, the designer would present his new collection in the Paris parade season. It would still make the debut of its second brand, McQ. However, Alexander McQueen canceled the parade in a hurry, before committing suicide.
Many celebrities have used her brand, such as Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Cameron Diaz, Michelle Obama, among many others. Therefore, his death left the fashion world in mourning for the great loss.
Alexander McQueen brand successor
Following the confirmation of the death of iconic designer Alexander McQueen, Sarah Burton was announced as creative director of McQueen’s brand and successor. In addition to supervising the development of all brand lines.
In short, Sarah started working with the designer 14 years earlier, while still in college. Acting as chief designer of the women’s collection, where he remained until 2010. In addition, Sarah was responsible for Kate Middleton’s wedding dress, winning the designer of the year award from the British Fashion Awards.
After that, the Alexander McQueen brand became the darling of great personalities such as the Duchess of Cambridge, the Duchess of Sussex, Lily James, Emily Blunt, Cate Blanchett, Charlize Theron, Glenn Close among others.
Testament of Alexander McQueen
After the stylist’s death, some rumors arose, for example, that Alexander McQueen thought of shooting himself in the head during one of his parades. In addition, in 2014, Maureen Callahan’s book ‘Champagne supernovas’ revealed that the designer had been diagnosed with HIV a few years earlier. It was probably one of the reasons for his deep depression.
As for the stylist’s will, he left 16 million pounds for his preferred charitable organizations. Like The Terrence Higgins Trust, a home for abandoned dogs and cats, the Buddhist Centre of London, and the Sarabande charity, founded by McQueen himself. It offers scholarships for the design school where the stylist studied.
However, what drew the most attention was the amount of 50,000 pounds that McQueen left to his dogs. In addition to the request of the stylist who wrote: “Take care of my dogs. Sorry about me. I love them.”
Icyonic Clutches
One of the best-known products of the Alexander McQueen brand are the famous and iconic party clutches. In short, the models with skull on the clasp are known as Skull and have rectangular shape, with rounded ends.
In addition, the party clutches are made in various types of materials, and can be smooth, with metallic or embroidered details.
On the other hand, there is the model called knuckle, larger than the Skull, which has room to place the ring-like fingers. In addition to details all worked.
Tribute at the Met Gala
In 2011, a year after the death of Alexander McQueen during the famous Met Gala (The Costume Institute Gala), a tribute was made to McQueen. With the exhibition entitled Alexander McQueen: Wild Beauty, composed of 100 creations made by the stylist throughout his career.
Finally, the iconic designer challenged the fashion world, expanding his understanding, as well as wearing his clothes as an expression of culture, politics and identity. Thus, the surprising, bold, intense, innovative, contemporary and genius stylist became known worldwide. And his creations have made a big impact on the fashion industry, shocking and impressing at the same time. And today, her legacy continues with the creations of designer Sarah Burton.
So if you liked this subject, you will also like this: Jane Birkin: the eternal inspiring muse of the French brand Hermés.
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