Alexander McQueen
[ 11 February 2010 ]
I was so, so sad to learn that Alexander McQueen, “the hooligan of English fashion”, has passed away. He was 40 years old. It is said that he committed suicide, though that hasn’t been confirmed.
McQueen wasn’t just a fashion designer, he was an incredible artist with irrepressible spirit, humour & bravery. He was also one of my favourites… & it’s easy to see why.
There is an apocryphal story that McQueen once sewed the words “I am a c*nt” into the sleeve lining of a suit he was working on for Prince Charles. (Source.)
The son of an East End taxi driver, he started making dresses for his three sisters when he was a child. He is said to have been discovered by the iconic Isabella Blow, who bought every single piece of his first collection. “I bought one thing a month & paid him £100 a week. He’d bring an outfit in a bin liner, I’d look at it & then he’d come to the cashpoint with me,” she said. Isabella committed suicide in 2007, after having been diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
“When you see a woman wearing McQueen, there’s a certain hardness to the clothes that makes her look powerful… It kind of fends people off. You have to have a lot of balls to talk to a woman wearing my clothes.”
(Alexander McQueen)
His runway shows were unlike any other, featuring shipwreck recreations, human chess games & life-size holograms. He was to show his McQ collection at Milk during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, which started today.
Karen Elson in Alexander McQueen, photographed by Tim Walker.
McQueen toned down his act at Givenchy, but continued to indulge his rebellious streak, causing controversy in Autumn 1998 with a show which included car-robots spraying paint over white cotton dresses, and double amputee model Aimee Mullins striding down the catwalk on intricately carved wooden legs. (Source.)
The self-described “pink sheep of the family”, McQueen won British Designer of the Year four times, & his vision & unapologetic rebellion made him a darling of the fashion industry. He will be sorely missed.
Love & love & love,
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I just heard, this is a completely devastating way to start my day ._.
I know, I feel sick. I am so sad about the whole thing.
so so sad, he was my favorite… :( Condolences to his family and friends. The fashion world will be a lot less magical without him.
RIP.
This is really devastating. :(
this really is an immense loss for fashion. he was a genius, no beating around the bush.
i can’t quite believe it.. truly devastating.
so heartbreaking. i can’t quite get my head around it.
...!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I feel that words are not necessary…
The world lost some great beauty today. It’s so so sad.
That is not right :( :( :( we have lost a true fashion genius not only that, an artist. :( oh god.
RIP to l’infant terrible. I remember reading an interview where he cackled in delight about being the son of a British cabbie and now he was dressing all these famous people. It was like he was putting two fingers up at people who tried to control the world of fashion and showing them you could come from anything and be a success as long as you had the guts to be original. That’s what I loved about him most I think.
I’m still in a bit of disbelief. It’s so bittersweet looking at his designs now and knowing that sort of innovation won’t ever grace the runways again. :( Truly a visionary.
I found out from your tweet, actually. I m shocked. An article on The Sun reports he was found hanged..
I am so broken-hearted by this.
The first fashion sow I saw on TV was a McQueen one, he was the reason I started caring about fashion.
Rest in peace.
This is the most awful news…I have always admired him and his work, feel so much respect for him. Every piece he ever did left me speechless, and his shows? Wow, just…wow.
:(:(
Im so upset, it was my dream to wear one of his amazing designs once I was successful enough in life to be able to.
Rest in peace Alexander.
Alexander isn’t really “dead” nothing ever truly dies for energy cannot be destroyed, nothing ever ends.
I first heard about this when I saw your tweet. When I opened the link, I gasped and said “what?!” aloud. I’m so shocked. This is so tragic.
Raising a glass of red wine in a best of British way to honour a beautifully talented man. I am in shock.
It made me frown so hard when I heard this.
So sad, he was such a talent x
What?! NO! Fuck, this is so terribly sad. What a horrible, horrible loss.
It’s a waste. He was only 40
I was absolutely stunned when I heard.
Fashion has a huge McQueen shaped hole in it now.
My eyes practically fell out of my head when I read the news just now. What a tragedy...
Wow what a huge blow to the fashion industry and the creative world in general. Such brilliance lost. RIP Mr. McQ. :(
I’m so glad you wrote about this.
He lives on through his beautiful creations.
My god. I had no idea. What a tragedy. He was the best.
One of the girls ran into the studio about an hour ago to break the news after hearing it on the radio. It was met by a collective gasp and general ruckus.
Today is a sad sad day for fashion, it’s still not quite sunk in, :(
RIP mcqueen. massive loss to the industry aswell as his family. still in shock.. xxx
So sad. I interviewed Lee many times and he was the most gentle, humorous man you could imagine and sharp as a pin. My introduction to his shows was at London Fashion Week in September 2000, when he seated his audience around a mirrored box, literally looking at themselves (he was a clever man, no irony escaped him!) When the lights went up inside the box, the mirror turned to glass and the models walked out, bandaged, in strait-jackets, with fake birds in their tousled hair. It was incredible and redefined for me what fashion could be. Fashion will certainly miss Alexander McQueen.
such a tragic loss, seriously. he’ll never be replaced. no-one could ever come close to the passion and excitment he had for fashion. truly awful. R.I.P
I never heard of him until the news of his death. How sad, I feel like I missed out! It’s always a loss when a creative light goes out in the world. How sad for his family.
TRAGIC!!!!
This is such terrible news. He was one of my favorites, such inspiring work. I’m still having a hard time believing it’s true.
This is shocking. He was definitely my favorite designer. Everything he made had a bit of magic in it.
I am utterly devastated. I love him.
It’s so so sad :( He was wonderful.
I’m shocked. When I saw the header of this article I was excited cause I thought you were going to be writing an article about his latest show. He is among the first fashion designers I fell in love with when I first really got interested in fashion. It was a plaid outfit worn by a girl with blazing red hair that really caught my eye back in his fall ready to wear 2006 collection. Your drama and artistry will live on.
Some of his genius.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfAfJu…
This is so terrible. I am so shocked and saddened by this news. He was so immensely talented and creative. I have never seen the work of a designer like this – so fantastical and imaginative. What will happen now? The fashion world will NEVER be the same. :(
This is the first I heard of it! How tragic; he really was a great artist and designer. And far too young to have passed on.
I am devastated. He was and always will be my favourite ever fashion designer. RIP. You, and Heath Ledger, Michael Jackson and all the other angels that had to leave early ;(
oh my god!
I am so sad to hear this, he was by far one of my favorite designers. Some of his pieces are so spectacular, I don’t think there’s really anyone else like him around.
Such an inspiring life force, gone! sob
The wait, I’m sure, upon velour
Out the rear view mirror, like standing above
Is soft fuzz. And the road seems so smooth
And maybe it was.
-you will be missed mr. mcqueen. rest in peace
I’m a fashion student, and my friend ran to our class this afternoon to tell us, at first I thought he was joking but it was all quiet and sad for the rest of the lesson.
oh, i was so saddened to hear this. rip mcqueen ;_;
RIP
It’s so incredibly sad. I’ve been crying on and off all day.
RIP McQueen
So sad, he was one of the few designers I enjoyed. I hope 2010 won’t be another death year.
One of my favourite David Lachapelle photos is of McQueen and Isabella Blow, here’s a link pdngallery.com/20years/fashion…
Such a loss of a true artist
May I please direct your attention here.
http://rebecca-star.livejournal.com/215116.html
I read about this last night and it has affected me to a surprising degree. I never realised how young he was, but I always admired his work even though I’m not a strict follower of the catwalk world. What a shame.
:(
It’s sad that some people can be so talented and famous yet still feel helplessly sad. 40 is too young to die. And suicide is the worst way to die. I can’t image how alone he must have felt.
RIP McQueen.
I loved him and his work. He simply was a genius and an original :( RIP Lee xx
Oooohhh nooooooo! This is indeed horrible news, there is nobody that comes even close to him in terms of clothes and accessories. He managed to make pieces that looked perfect to me -loaded with attitude and the right mix of punk & queen. I am sad.