Last week I was fortunate enough to attend one of the most highly anticipated fashion exhibitions of all time- Alexander McQueen's Savage Beauty at London's Victoria & Albert museum.
Savage Beauty is the first and largest retrospective of McQueen's work, comprising of over 600 pieces from his 1992 MA graduate show, to the incompleted Fall 2010 collection. Without a doubt a deeply immersive experience.
Before witnessing the pieces up close, my preconceptions of the exhibition were limited. Of course I had seen pictures of his work and viewed the shows, but I think it is 100% safe to say that none of those images do the exhibition justice. The reality of the enthralling production is like nothing else I've ever seen for an exhibit before. Absolutely incredible.
As you enter the exhibit, you are immediately plunged into the mind of the genius that is McQueen. Starting with the seemingly ordinary pieces from McQueen's graduation in '92 transitioning into his Savile Row days. Complex tailoring which consolidated the back-bone techniques for his later creations, and of course the low-slung 'bumster' trousers which became his signature.
Romanticism, the word which portrayed the raw and the disturbing mind of McQueen. It became evident that every creation you stood in front of came to life in such a way that made you realise how the exhibition is reimagining the way we see and engage with fashion on display today.
Let us turn our attention to the 'cabinet of curiosities', the centre of the exhibition. Filled with all the fragments that made up McQueen's madly magnificent mind, however focusing on the fetishistic angle of his accessories. From the 10-inch Armadillo shoes (Platos Atlantis), the spinning centrepiece of Shalom Harlow's spray painted dress ( No.13 '99) and his chain-mail armours. (The Horn Of Plenty)
One of my favourite rooms was 'Romantic Primitivism', showcasing McQueen's inspiration from the natural world. Collections shown included, ' It's a Jungle Out There '97'- leather bodysuits featuring taxidermied baby crocodile heads, which mimicked epaulettes. Or a pony skin jacket which ejected impala horns out the shoulders. The collection showed the relationship between predator and prey- the dynamics of power.
'Romantic Exoticism' was, by far the most exciting room to see. First and foremost because it displayed VOSS 2001. The show which was staged in a mirrored box. Meaning the audience could see in, but the models couldn't see out. The piece I had most wanted to see in forever was the red ombré purple dress that Erin O'Connor had worn. Seeing it in person was so overwhelmingly beautiful, the dress itself is so much more than you originally think: dyed ostrich feathers and hand-painted red microscope slides. Incredible!
To all my readers, I would recommend you go a buy tickets for this exhibition. Personally, I found this exhibit to be so unbelievably beautiful, it made me speechless. It was an emotional experience, you feel like you're in his creative mind. Long may his legacy go on!
