Alexander McQueen 1969-2010

The fashion community has suffered a tremendous loss today. British designer Alexander McQueen was found dead in his London apartment this morning.

Alexander McQueen was one of the rare visionaries who truly transformed art, fashion, and culture. He was also one of my personal favorites, a designer whose work I had planned to study in London at his alma mater this year. In my blog profile, when I refer to the "illustrious Saint Martins grads of recent years," McQueen is no doubt at the top of that list.

From Givenchy to his own design house, McQueen continually pushed boundaries and revolutionized the way we perceive fashion, for his clothing was truly wearable art. Like fellow British designer John Galliano, McQueen's work was instantly recognizable and always carried a unique point-of-view. You could never accuse McQueen of borrowing inspiration or taking queues from other artists. His work was always entirely original. McQueen was also a perfectionist. My favorite Vogue writer, Plum Sykes, described her experience with her dear friend, Alexander McQueen, when he designed her wedding dress. Her friendship with McQueen stretched back to his earliest days as a designer, when he barely had a penny to his name. Sykes would pay McQueen in cash since he did not have a bank account. She also walked the catwalk in 1994 for one of his first collections. So, naturally, she called upon him to design a gown for her most important day, with McQueen insisting that the gown be absolutely immaculate.

While McQueen's death is a great loss for the British fashion community (and, of course, the industry as a whole), McQueen's contributions and legacy cannot be underestimated. He inspired a generation of designers, challenged the community to think outside the box (see his progressive Fall 2009 collection as evidence), and ultimately left an indelible mark on 20th and 21st century fashion. McQueen may have lived a short life of only 40 years, but history will remember him forever. I truly believe that his name will be said alongside fashion's greatest couturiers. Chanel. Dior. Poiret. Lanvin. Balenciaga. McQueen.

My thoughts go out to McQueen's family and friends at this time.

** One of my favorite blogs, "Seams to Me," has a wonderful devotional piece to Alexander McQueen as well. I encourage you to read her kind words celebrating McQueen's life! http://seamstome.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/alexander-mcqueen-commits-suicide/