Alexander McQueen Fall 2010

I was going to write a review of Lee McQueen's last collection before he passed away but I felt that my words couldn't do it justice. I can only say that his absence will be sorely felt; for his clothes and his radical vision where a thing of beauty.

He was the only designer who wasn't afraid to take huge risks with his collections; will there be any more innovators, free-thinkers and dreamers like McQueen? I hope so.

Here is a review from the New York Times.

PARIS — With a pattern of angel wings undulating over her shoulder blades, the model walked through the gilded salon in one of Alexander McQueen’s final creations before he chose to leave this world. The private show that took place Tuesday, to the classical music Mr. McQueen had been listening to as he cut and fitted the 2010 autumn collection, was a requiem for a great designer. His vision of Gothic glory, with a world bathed in religious symbolism, was translated not just with immense subtlety and beauty but also with the urgent futurism that was the essence of his spirit. So the abstractions of Hieronymus Bosch paintings were not just printed on the sensuous and shapely outfits, where a taut bodice grew out of a multifolded hipline or emerged from soft fabrics flowing around it. Instead the images, with a focus in the British royal heritage of lions rampant or Grinling Gibbons’s wood carvings, were screened, manipulated and digitally woven. This was part of the designer’s exceptional reach from historic past to cyberspace future. But the anger and energy that had always driven Mr. McQueen to his finest work had turned to a mesmerizing calm for this 15-piece collection, which he completed before his suicide last month. The medieval headdress no longer had the wild, joyous madness that it had when Isabella Blow, his friend and mentor, wore one for a 1990s photo shoot. Everything in this collection seemed to be distilled from last season’s short and taut dresses balanced on animalistic footwear. Here sandals wreathed in gilded roses matched the salon’s ornate decoration, while the mirrors reflected the models’ golden feather Mohawks. The intense workmanship was of couture quality, which is the way Mr. McQueen had been moving his signature line. There were damp eyes among the small audience and sobs backstage — both from personal grief and at the scale of the loss to fashion of this singular designer. In this collection Alexander — Lee — McQueen showed his sensitivity to history, his powers of research, his imagination, his technical skills and his love of women, often misinterpreted or misunderstood, but here evident in every fold and feather.






For more photos of the show click here.

Update: Watch a video to see the clothes up close

Lee

I fell in love with Alexander McQueen's designs around the same time I discovered fashion.

Looking back I think it might have been because of McQueen that I came to love fashion so much. It wasn't just because his designs were so wacky and ahead of the curve, but they seemed to match my strange dreams (or nightmares?) about the world; macabre but sensual; insanely beautiful but frightening; a world that I couldn't really put my finger on but knew existed. It was as if he could put everyone's fears and dreams into a collection.

I remember watching his Spring/Summer 2010 collection live through his website. The site crashed because so many people wanted to watch it as well. What I saw almost made me weep. I was so looking forward to his next collection. And the one after that. And the one after that...

To say he was a visionary is an understatement. To say he was a genius; well, that goes without saying. The world is a lot less beautiful now that Lee is no longer here.


Click here to see more of his collections.

Spring 2001

Spring 2002
Fall 2002
Spring 2003
Fall 2003
Fall 2004

Spring 2005

Fall 2005

Spring 2006

Fall 2006

Spring 2007

Fall 2007
Spring 2008
Fall 2008
Resort 2009
Spring 2009
Fall 2009
Spring 2010

RIP Alexander McQueen

Golden Globes: My picks

Tonight is the 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards; where TV and movie actors come together to celebrate the best of 2009 (according to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.)

To quote Taylor from The Rachel Zoe Project: award show fashion is about "pleasing the masses." As a result we don't see many fashion-forward dresses on the red carpet.

However I have come up with my fantasy list of what the actors should wear on the carpet, masses be damned!

Carey Mulligan

I still haven't seen An Education (blasphemous, I know) but I have seen her rock the red carpet in quirky, fun dresses. She has an ethereal elfin look about her; so she can get away with wearing more avant garde clothing.

I chose her to wear this fun S/S '10 Gianfranco Ferré dress. Because Carey has such delicate features, I thought she should wear something a bit more edgy with strong shoulders and a cool print. It's not overpowering but it makes a strong statement.


Marion Cotillard

I recently became a huge fan of Marion's after watching Public Enemies last week. She is so gorgeous and an amazing actress. I'm in love with her. She has a great body so I think this S/S '10 Valentino jumpsuit would look really chic. She could let her dark hair fall around the shoulders and wear lots of diamonds. She would own the carpet. Anot many actresses would dare to wear a jumpsuit at the Globes (except for Tilda Swinton.)


Penelope Cruz

Penelope's obvious beauty usually outshines her dress, so I wanted to pick something a bit more subtle that would compliment her big eyes and that big, dark head of hair. This S/S '10 Nina Ricci is an interesting choice; I like the one-shoulder sleeve with the diagonal ruffle. And the slightly see-through dress make it sexy but not obvious. It's beautiful without being prom.

Nicole Kidman

Nic always wears figure-hugging, show-stopping dresses and this S/S '10 Miu Miu takes it one step further. It will show off her slim figure but the puffed up shoulders make it more fashion forward. I really love the blue, scale-like sequins.



Kate Winslet

I've always wanted to see Kate Winslet in something less matronly. She always goes for restrained glamour; and though she always looks amazing, I feel that she should go for something with more va-va-voom. This S/S '10 Lanvin dress has tons of glamour but also sex appeal with that slit down the leg. Lanvin was one of my favourite Spring collections and I think Kate embodies the sophisticated but fun woman the collection stands for.



Cameron Diaz

Cam likes to take chances with her clothes. Who could forget the hot pink Chanel from last year's Globes? This S/S '10 Nina Ricci would look banging on her body. I like the floppy bows, and the cute shoulders. It's quirky but glam.


January Jones

I've recently become obsessed with Mad Men. I bought the first season last weekend and became a hermit all week because I couldn't stop watching it. I just bought season 2 yesterday. God help me. January Jones (who plays Betty Draper) is a knock out. On the show she exudes old Hollywood glamour but in real life, she is more of a vixen. Last year she knocked it out of the park with a geometric Versace gown at the Emmys. This year I am also choosing Versace because I love the colour purple but I also like the cool sci-fi-ish pattern. It's a bit futuristic but sensual.



Tilda Swinton

Never one to conform to trends, Tilda Swinton can be counted on to wear the unexpected. Most people usually don't understand her style; but that's what so great about her. So I chose this S/S '10 Roland Mouret jumpsuit. The shiny blue will work well against her pale skin and peroxide blonde, short hair. And it just looks like so much fun to wear.



Olivia Wilde

I am one of those people who think Olivia Wilde > Megan Fox. She is a great actress and is super sexy but in a more natural way. She also wears hot clothes. I think this S/S '10 Alexander McQueen dress would be perfect for her. It's all about showing off the legs and the waist. It's futuristic but romantic. I think she would have a lot of fun wearing it.

Kate Hudson

Gold + Kate = party. We all know that woman loves to have a wild time, and she would have a ball in this sexy piece by Zuhair Murad. When I saw it, the first thing I thought of was Kate. It's young, it's flirty, it has a lot of cutouts to show off her body and it's not a prom dress. Perfection!


I am excited to see what the actors will actually wear to the Globes. Here's hoping it won't be too boring!

Under the sea

Who were those off-world sea creatures at Alexander McQueen S/S 2010?

Yesterday's collection set the standard for the future of fashion. The event was live-streamed on Nick Knight's SHOWstudio.com although the video lagged a lot and was choppy, and thanks to Lady Gaga's tweet, crashed the site so many people weren't able to see the video.

I was stunned by what I did see: The models walked to the sounds of drums, airy flutes and breathing in a sort of space jungle trance.

The first thing I noticed were the shoes. At first I thought they had a very alien-like appearance, tall stilettos with a wide front, but then from the side they looked like elegant hooves in reptile skins. Whatever they were; they looked literally out of this world. And kudos to the models for being able to walk in them and make it look effortless; almost as if they were floating in water.







And then there were the dresses. In 3D, computer graphics, laser-cut glory. Nipped waists on dresses with very short hemlines, emphasis on hips and shoulders, liquid leather dresses, outfits that were half-suit half dress, shimmering pants, sheer tops, flowing and bubble skirts and string-like gauze blouses. Colours started off with a mix of reptilian yellow, jade and bright yellow, and then dirty brown (like you would find under the sea,) and stunning blues (which reminded me of the upcoming movie "Avatar") and some midnight black.

This is a collection I will be looking at over and over to try to digest what it means. But what I do know is that McQueen has changed the way I will look at fashion. Here's to forward thinking!

Update: You can watch the show here









(Photos: style.com, @mcQueenWorld)