ALEXANDER McQUEEN

‘Fashion should be a form of escapism and not a form of imprisonment’

BRAND OVERVIEW

Brand founder Lee Alexander McQueen was best known for having worked as chief designer at Givenchy from 1996 to 2001 and founding his own Alexander McQueen label in 1992. His achievements in fashion earned him four British Designer of the Year awards (1996,1997, 2001 and 2003), as well as the CFDA’s International Designer of the Year award in 2003. In 2000, Gucci bought a 51% stake in Alexander McQueen’s private company, and provided the capital for McQueen to expand his business and obtain global success as a haute couture fashion house.

Creative director Sarah Burton has been with McQueen since 1997 when she worked as McQueen’s personal assistant. She has led the company to critical acclaim since she took the helm following McQueen’s death in 2010. Burton was appointed Head of Womenswear in 2000 during which time she created dresses for Michelle Obama, Cate Blanchett, Lady Gaga, Gwyneth Paltrow and designing Kate Middleton’s wedding dress for the 2011 Royal Wedding. After company owner Gucci confirmed that the brand would continue despite McQueen’s death, Burton was named as the new creative director of Alexander McQueen in May 2010. I see McQueen’s work as wearable art.

BRAND CONCEPT/ STRATEGY

McQueen was a tormented creative and this tension is evident in all his work. McQueen was able to solidify his place as both a fashion and creative visionary. The concepts behind McQueen’s work that he designed himself were on the darker side of life, noted as ‘always addressing the sublime.’ The McQueen brand has become internationally recognised and commended.

Long before the internet had a hold on brand influence, the fashion industry understood that a successful brand requires global visibility - the McQueen brand has one of the best practices in branding. Some of the values that made Alexander McQueen such a successful stand out brand can be identified as;

Meticulous attention to detail - detail is where expertise shines through
Courage to break the rules - he once was quoted saying ‘what I learned from the age of 16 is that you have to be like an architect - you’ve got to know the rules to break them’ Without risk there would be no rewards
Dedication to his unique ability - centred on how success comes from focusing on what you like most, and what you're best at - taking a design from concept to construction
Expert collaboration - early in his career he collaborated with accessory, shoe, set, retail designers and djs who could enhance his brand and make his vision come to life - cautious collaborations put him in even higher demand

TARGET CONSUMER

‘I want to empower women. I want people to be afraid of the women I dress’

McQueen’s target market is mostly celebrities and wealthy socialites. They also aim to appeal to well off late teens and adults in their 20s-30s through their McQ Alexander McQueen line and their collaborations with brands such as Target. McQueen’s signature styles also make them recognisable amongst the global fashion market; you can almost instantly recognise a McQueen staple item.

CELEBRITIES IN McQUEEN

Since taking over as creative director in 2010, Sarah Burton’s ability to make both dreamy dresses combined with expert tailoring has made the label an A-List failsafe. Celebrity patrons, including Nicole Kidman, Penelope Cruz, Sarah Jessica Parker and Rihanna have frequently been spotted wearing Alexander McQueen clothing to events. Artists such as Björk and Lady Gaga have often incorporated McQueen in their music videos. Having such high held opinion amongst the fashion world has meant celebrities want to wear McQueen which results in more media attention and therefore an ever growing fashion empire.

Lady Gaga in the armadillo shoes

Rihanna in archive wooden choppiness shoes

Björk in a speciality made McQueen dress - McQueen contributed to Björk’s growing identity as a creative artist of depth. These artists have massive social media followings so once McQueen found a way in with celebrities, they were instantly connected to all their fans.

SAVAGE BEAUTY EXHIBITION

After the tragic suicide of McQueen in 2010, the fashion world was shaken - the savage beauty exhibition opened to remember some of his finest pieces and admire the brilliant mind that was lost. What I love about McQueen is the fact that his work looks as if it is a changing state - all his work looks like shifting movements, nothing is static.

McQueen makes you question what you think you’re seeing, usually unlikely materials in context for a garment. He seems to go beyond the boundaries of functional fashion and into the practical art of form. One of my favourite collections of his is Plato’s Atlantis, his last completed collection before he died. I find the colours and the textiles to be more of an intriguing fine art display than a collection, although he still manages to make the pieces wearable.

McQueen’s pieces have a way of making humans seem animalistic; for example, his armadillo boots make walking impractical and makes the wearer walk in a non-humanistic way - it’s little details like these that make Alexander McQueen stand out from the rest.

ARTIST INSPIRATION

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of British design house Alexander McQueen’s iconic skull scarf, British artist Damien Hirst collaborated with the famed fashion brand house in the creation of 30 limited edition scarves. The patterns were adapted from Hirst’s entomology series, a body of work that he began in 2009. The large scale paintings on the scarves were composed from the intricate placement of the butterflies, spiders and various insect species in the formation of kaleidoscopic, geometric shapes. The scarves appropriate the motifs in the organisational layout of McQueen’s signature skull image, an unmistakable emblem of the brand. The partnership seamlessly plays on the shared aesthetic vision of the artist and designer, in which symmetry and strong references to natural history and the environment are significant parts of their creative vision.

‘Give me time and I’ll give a revolution’ - Alexander McQueen