With a vision that resonated with fashion lovers across the world – heartfelt tributes to Alexander McQueen have been flooding since the news of his death broke yesterday.
Alexandra Shulman, the editor of British Vogue, praised his ability to combine creativity with technology saying:
“His brilliant imagination knew no bounds as he conjured up collection after collection of extraordinary designs. At one level he was a master of the fantastic, creating astounding fashion shows that mixed design, technology and performance and on another he was a modern-day genius whose gothic aesthetic was adopted by women the world over. His death is the hugest loss to anyone who knew him and for very many who didn’t.”
Lorraine Candy, Editor – in – Chief of Elle Magazine wrote a tribute in today’s Daily Mail, and is planning to wear an aquamarine McQueen creation to the forthcoming Elle Style Awards:
To truly understand what McQueen was about you would have to have seen a one of his runway shows up close. Only then would you have been transported to the other worldly place that was his extraordinary fashion imagination. In the damp, cold, unglamorous sports stadium where the Paris Fashion Week show has been held in recent years, he moved us to tears, to joy and occasionally to fury. It was impossible not to have a strong opinion about him.
Victoria Beckham, who has often been spotted in McQueen’s designs – including his tartan pencil skirts and skull motifs – described him as a ‘master of fashion, creative genius and an inspiration. The fashion industry has lost a true great. An icon of all time’. As a nascent fashion designer herself, McQueen’s eye for sharp tailoring and sculpting is often evident in Victoria’s collections.
His peers, including Dame Vivienne Westwood, Katherine Hamnett and Matthew Williamson also made heartfelt tributes, with American designer Jeremy Scott using his Twitter page to say;
”I am filled with so much sadness today, I can not stop crying. McQueen had been someone i looked up to in school”
Culture secretary Ben Bradshaw thanked McQueen for raising the profile of British fashion around the world, saying:
“Alexander McQueen made an outstanding contribution to British fashion. His extraordinary talent and creativity mean that his designs are adored not just by followers of haute couture but lovers of great style everywhere. This is a great loss to one of Britain’s most successful industries and to the design world more widely.”
Already, McQueen’s designs have become collectors items, with Elle reporting a spike in sale of McQueen pieces as early as 4pm yesterday, with everything from signature print skull scarves to a £2, 845 reptile pint silk dress from Net-A-Porter.
London store Liberty will unveiling a McQueen window and ground-floor installation, while the Bond Street store has removed its window displays and replaced them with black curtains. Hand written notes, candles and flowers are gathering at the door, while the store flies its flag at half-mast. In New York, the McQueen Chelsea stores was closed for business, with Naomi Campbell making a visit to the store with friends, wearing a skull print scarf.
