It still pains me to think too deeply about McQueen and what his creativity and literally stunning artistry meant--and still means--to me. I do not feel I am overstating my case when I say that his suicide robbed us of one of the most breathtakingly innovative, fertile, and visionary imaginations in history. In terms of influence and importance, his output, I truly believe, is certainly right up there with Picasso or Michelangelo or Monet. His loss is a huge loss not just for the world of fashion, but for the concepts of imagination and creativity everywhere. In a world such as this one, we can hardly afford to lose people with such vision.
And the Met's exhibit "Savage Beauty" looks like it does a marvelous job in honoring and presenting McQueen's ferocious creativity; this retrospective culls McQueen quotes, insights from his long-time assistant and now head of the house Sarah Burton, and descriptions of McQueen's inspirations for his collections, along with a dazzling display of pieces from all of McQueen's collections seen in immersive, atmospheric galleries designed to feel entirely connected to the pieces in them. If it's possible, I appreciate even more now the probing curiosity, penetrating mind, and mad genius of McQueen.
I wish I could fly to New York to see this show, but alas, I am off to Italy. So if you can't get to the Met for the show (which closes July 31), do what I did and pore over the Met's website for "Savage Beauty" (link at bottom) which features pictures and descriptions of the galleries (seen below), photos of some of the key pieces on display, and lots and lots of riveting videos all narrated by the curator of the exhibit, Andrew Bolton. Watch the the video at the end of this post for a marvelous overview of the show, in which Bolton concisely observes that McQueen used "fashion as a vehicle to express very complex ideas and concepts."
Above: Views of the galleries rendered by Joseph Bennett
Above: A frock coat from McQueen's 1992 MA graduation collection at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design entitled Jack The Ripper Stalks His Victims. The coat is of pink silk satin with a thorn print and white satin lining encapsulating human hair.
Above: A dress from the 2001 VOSS collection made of red and black ostrich feathers and actual glass medical slides painted red to resemble blood samples.
Above: McQueen often used natural and elemental materials in his creations and the dress of real oyster shells under the stunning embroidered overdress based on a nineteenth century Japanese silk screen, also from 2001's VOSS collection, is a fantastic example. McQueen also collaborated with jewelry designers and other artisans to add accessories to his collections; the necklace seen here is made by extraordinary jewelry designer Shaun Leane from Tahitian pearls and silver.
Above: Another example of McQueen's use of natural materials is this Romantic dress entirely of pheasant feathers from his '06-'07 collection The Widows of Culloden. (Read the "Savage Beauty" website for descriptions and explanations about the inspiration for this incredible collection.
Above: The iconic antler dress also from The Widows of Culloden collection.
Above: Created for double-amputee and Paralympics athlete Aimee Mullins (who also appeared in Matthew Barney's epic CREMASTER 3 film/ art installation), this ensemble featured a pair of legs for Aimee, seen here wearing them on the runway, carved from solid ash.
No comments:
Post a Comment