I don’t remember which Met exhibition held Alexander McQueen’s Oyster Dress? Must’ve been Anglomania.
It brought me to tears.
I’d never seen a dress like that, not in person, and it was magical.
The dress had a life of its own, like The Tempest meets cotton candy, and I’d have given anything to reach through the glass and touch it.
Since then, I’ve been lucky enough to see lots of McQueen in real life, mostly on Daphne Guinness who wears it like a second skin, and a handful of fashion editors– my version of rock stars– who carry his clothes off with aplomb.
Tim Blanks wrote, “It always felt to me like he’d be the last man standing.” Sure, there’s loads of other creative talent out there, but McQueen was like a brilliant ball of energy burning in the middle of what sometimes felt like an endless parade of beige. His influence was everywhere – fashion, music, art – and though his collections often earned a “controversial” label, they were the collection everyone was talking about about at the end of each season.
I cried this morning when Lauren called to tell me he’d killed himself. I can’t imagine fashion without him. And, to be perfectly blunt, going from show to show in this miserable daze sucks.
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I have been absolutely devastated by the news. I am a fashion journalist and a fashion blogger and I can say, emphatically, that Lee Alexander McQueen was the REASON I got into fashion journalism to begin with. I had always dreamed of the day I'd get to meet him, and now I never can. His death feels so personal and so final. I have been weepy all day.
it's so sad that we've lost such a creative mind that was still on the rise
it's so sad that we've lost such a creative mind that was still on the rise
This is just tragic. I literally dropped the plate I was holding when I heard the news on NBC. What an awful way to start off fashion month.
This is just tragic. I literally dropped the plate I was holding when I heard the news on NBC. What an awful way to start off fashion month.
I was shaken to the core when I heard the news. I've never seen his clothing in person, but his creative genius was something so very rare. I cannot imagine fashion without him. I, too, walked around (school, not fashion week) in a daze. Someone so young and so talented does not deserve that kind of pain and suffering.xx
I used that dress for an ad Sheila Metzner shot for Neiman Marcus. An ad I'm still very proud of. It bothers me that the mainstream press is going on and on about how shocking and provocative McQueen could be, without also talking about how exquisite and beautiful he could be as well.
I started crying in the middle of biology when I heard; everyone looked at me like I was a freak, and I just told them I had something in my eyes. He was a genius in the highest form, and I will forever idolize the talent that man had. He will be missed.
He was only 40 years old,but i understand his distress,of loosing his mother,i lost my mother 5years ago,and at first,i wanted to die,i was praying God,to take me with her.Now,i want to live,but i cry everytime i see a mother with her daughter.And i am 58.
This dress was my favorite from the spring 2003 collection… God, we will never have this designer or someone of this magnitude ever again. But his work will live on forever…
PREACH BRITT. OMG that dress made me want to be in fashion. I remember when Debra Messing wore it to the VH1 fashion awards. You're so right Britt. It remains my favorite dress and one of my all time favorite collections for that matter.
PREACH BRITT. OMG that dress made me want to be in fashion. I remember when Debra Messing wore it to the VH1 fashion awards. You're so right Britt. It remains my favorite dress and one of my all time favorite collections for that matter.
PREACH BRITT. OMG that dress made me want to be in fashion. I remember when Debra Messing wore it to the VH1 fashion awards. You're so right Britt. It remains my favorite dress and one of my all time favorite collections for that matter.
PREACH BRITT. OMG that dress made me want to be in fashion. I remember when Debra Messing wore it to the VH1 fashion awards. You're so right Britt. It remains my favorite dress and one of my all time favorite collections for that matter.
PREACH BRITT. OMG that dress made me want to be in fashion. I remember when Debra Messing wore it to the VH1 fashion awards. You're so right Britt. It remains my favorite dress and one of my all time favorite collections for that matter.
PREACH BRITT. OMG that dress made me want to be in fashion. I remember when Debra Messing wore it to the VH1 fashion awards. You're so right Britt. It remains my favorite dress and one of my all time favorite collections for that matter.
PREACH BRITT. OMG that dress made me want to be in fashion. I remember when Debra Messing wore it to the VH1 fashion awards. You're so right Britt. It remains my favorite dress and one of my all time favorite collections for that matter.
PREACH BRITT. OMG that dress made me want to be in fashion. I remember when Debra Messing wore it to the VH1 fashion awards. You're so right Britt. It remains my favorite dress and one of my all time favorite collections for that matter.
It was Alexander McQueen who made me fall in love with fashion and Alexander McQueen who inspired me to take creative risks in my own life. His fearless pursuit of what some call “the dark side” of fashion led him to become one of the most genius designers working in the past several decade. His Fall 2008 collection brought me to tears, and looking over it today I cannot believe we have lost such a beautiful mind. Rest in peace, Lee.
It was Alexander McQueen who made me fall in love with fashion and Alexander McQueen who inspired me to take creative risks in my own life. His fearless pursuit of what some call “the dark side” of fashion led him to become one of the most genius designers working in the past several decade. His Fall 2008 collection brought me to tears, and looking over it today I cannot believe we have lost such a beautiful mind. Rest in peace, Lee.
This feels like when Michael Jackson died… Everyone being overdramatic. I don't mean to be insensitive but you CRIED? Did you know him?? Well, his last collection is sure to sell out now and become collector's items. This will create a lot of excitement for next collection as well, to see what his team puts together without him.
This feels like when Michael Jackson died… Everyone being overdramatic. I don't mean to be insensitive but you CRIED? Did you know him?? Well, his last collection is sure to sell out now and become collector's items. This will create a lot of excitement for next collection as well, to see what his team puts together without him.
This feels like when Michael Jackson died… Everyone being overdramatic. I don't mean to be insensitive but you CRIED? Did you know him?? Well, his last collection is sure to sell out now and become collector's items. This will create a lot of excitement for next collection as well, to see what his team puts together without him.
This feels like when Michael Jackson died… Everyone being overdramatic. I don't mean to be insensitive but you CRIED? Did you know him?? Well, his last collection is sure to sell out now and become collector's items. This will create a lot of excitement for next collection as well, to see what his team puts together without him.
This feels like when Michael Jackson died… Everyone being overdramatic. I don't mean to be insensitive but you CRIED? Did you know him?? Well, his last collection is sure to sell out now and become collector's items. This will create a lot of excitement for next collection as well, to see what his team puts together without him.
This feels like when Michael Jackson died… Everyone being overdramatic. I don't mean to be insensitive but you CRIED? Did you know him?? Well, his last collection is sure to sell out now and become collector's items. This will create a lot of excitement for next collection as well, to see what his team puts together without him.
Shanna, I believe that everyone has the right to be upset about something like this. Whether you knew McQueen in the physical or not, he's been an incredible inspiration to a lot of people in and out of the fashion world.
When a public figure dies its common to feel loss and grief like if they were a personal friend/ relative, Shanna. RIP McQueen
McQueen was by far the most talented designer of your time. He was and inspiration from which I found the courage to stand up to my Arab father to pursue a career in fashion design. Now, as my first show nears, I remember the power his clothes held-his clothes have the power to move move people, to inspire, and to liberate. McQueen has passed away, but his legacy remains. May you rest in peace McQueen, and watch over us as we strive to create our own work that may transcend expectations and render the impossible possible.
our* time
I adored his brilliant mind and everything that came out of it. Even if I didn't particularly like his creations, the ideas behind them made me think. So few designers can do that (for me anyway). If suicide ends up the official cause of death, it makes me even sadder. I wish he had been able to fight through his grief and not give in to it.
**edit** Suicide is the official cause.
Have you guys seen this article by Toby Young on The Telegraph's website? He basically says that there is no such thing as talent or genius (or legitimate factories) in fashion, and that the only way to get attention from editors is to have “a gift for self-presentation,” which is the only reason McQueen was celebrated. It's kind of appalling, actually.http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/tobyyoung/100...
also, too, his technical mastery. My sole McQueen piece is tailored to perfection.
is it just me or does everyone else feel unmotivated to enjoy the shows? i can barely bring myself to watch the coverage. just heart sickening.
is it just me or does everyone else feel unmotivated to enjoy the shows? i can barely bring myself to watch the coverage. just heart sickening.
It is such a big loss.The fashion world lost a great designer. No one will ever be able to dream fashion the way he did.
It is such a big loss.The fashion world lost a great designer. No one will ever be able to dream fashion the way he did.
No one will ever be as creative and AMAZing as Lee was.. RIP :-(http://thedailytruffle.com/2010/02/r-i-p-alexan...
Does anyone else find that article in the Telegraph rather disrespectful, to both McQueen's memory and to fashion in general? It actually kind of pissed me off. I don't understand why Alexander McQueen was any less of an artist than Oscar Wilde or Jimi Hendrix, or why the only reason he was successful was because he was 'shy and radiated hostility'. Oh, and how Young said there's no way to determine a 'good' fashion designer annoyed me to no ends: there's no actual hard evidence that Oscar Wilde is good writer, or Hendrix a good guitarist, except that they touched and inspired people. JUST LIKE MCQUEEN. His clothes were inspiring, creative, innovative, beautiful and brought people to tears. RIP Lee McQueen!
I think it's rather sad (and a classic sign of his lazy, default-to-some-vague-opinion-I-formed-10-years-ago approach to writing) that someone intelligent like Toby Young didn't take a little time to examine some of McQueen's masterpieces before dashing this off. (A recently deceased subject at least merits that, surely.) Some of his arguments probably hold some weight, like the idea that being a 'character' is a valuable trait for a top designer, but the idea that you can't evaluate craftsmanship or come to a fairly common understanding of what is or isn't original/exciting/likely to be influential shows an ignorance of the field that's beneath him. I don't much like Toby Young, but if he had just died, I'd take a little longer to examine his work and the field in which he worked before I passed judgment on his talent.