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A Somber Style Week
By Chie Davis
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As the tents went up at Bryant Park in New York, spirits were down, with many mourning the loss of the English designer, Lee Alexander McQueen. The legendary fashion icon was found dead in his London apartment on February 11th – which ironically marked the start of New York Fashion Week. Sadly, Mc Queen’s death also came just a week after the passing of his own mother.
Known as "the hooligan of English fashion," McQueen’s stellar runway presentations and blast of creativity both reinvigorated fashion and set a new standard in the realm of design. Gravitating to the study of style early, McQueen abandoned conventional schooling at the age of 16, to engage in a series of apprenticeships including: Savile Row Tailors Anderson & Sheppard, Gieves & Hawkes and Angel and Bermans; theatrical costumiers in London as well as Romeo Gigli in Italy. His early clients included Prince Charles and Mikhail Gorbachev.
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Obtaining a master’s degree in 1994 from the prestigious Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London, McQueen caught the eye of Isabella Blow, a highly regarded stylist at the time. Becoming fast friends, she presented him as ‘Alexander McQueen’ to the fashion world. His early runway collections sent shockwaves through the fashion community. McQueen became synonymous with creating presentations that flirted with breathtaking and teetered into the land of the beyond. Ranging from a human chess game, holograms, the shipwrecked, and even a show titled ‘Highland Rape-’ in terms of themed presentations- McQueen held nothing back.
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Favored amongst celebrities for his strong mix of fantasy and rebellion, Bjork, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Sarah Jessica Parker and Penelope Cruz and stylist Rachel Zoe were all thoroughly ‘McQueened.’ He was also associated with sparking signature trends. McQueen’s “bumsters” sponned the ‘low rise jean’ trend, his use of skull images on fabric sparked a hotly debated craze, and his hiring of Indian models in London opened eyes to diversity.
Appointed as head designer of Givenchy in 1996 and Creative Director and partial owner of Gucci in 2000, one can find Alexander McQueen boutiques in New York, London, Milan, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. He also collaborated on specialty lines with Mac cosmetics and Puma athletics.
Flagged with many prestigious awards, including being named British Designer of the Year four times, some paint McQueen as a troubled soul that battled his fair share of demons. While media reports have unofficially reported his death at 40 years old, as suicide – as of press time, the actual cause of death had not yet been confirmed. Survived by his father and five siblings, a family spokesperson published this statement on the Alexander McQueen website:
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“On behalf of Lee McQueen’s family, Alexander McQueen today announces the tragic news that Lee McQueen, the founder and designer of the Alexander McQueen brand, has been found dead at his home. At this stage it is inappropriate to comment on this tragic news beyond saying that we are devastated and are sharing a sense of shock and grief with Lee's family. Lee's family has asked for privacy in order to come to terms with this terrible news and we hope the media will respect this.”
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