Alexander McQueen: ‘Hooligan of English fashion’ to national treasure

If there’s one iconic fashion moment from 2011 that will be revisited for decades to come, it has to be princess-to-be Kate Middleton finally stepping out of her wedding carriage revealing an elegant Victorian-influenced satin dress designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen.

In January, it was revealed that the dress was one of two nominations the fashion house received at London Design Museum’s annual honours. The other nod was for McQueen’s acclaimed ‘Savage Beauty’ retrospective, which ran at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art last year and celebrated his work from 1992 – right up to his posthumous runway show in February 2010.

So, it seems that even following his untimely death at the age of 40, the name of Alexander McQueen is safe in the hands of Burton as its creative director. But how did the house established by a man who was once labelled the “hooligan of English fashion” by the French press during his stint at Givenchy in Paris become a British legend celebrated not only by the fashion community, but the Royal Family?

As the youngest of six siblings, raised in the London borough of Newham, young Lee Alexander McQueen was certainly born a world away from the international catwalks upon which he’d forge his career. However, from a very young age it was clear this son of an East End cab driver would strive to achieve a dream that lay beyond the boundaries of his humble beginnings. Leaving school at 16, he had his first taste of a Royal appointment at the Savile Row tailors that counted The Prince of Wales among its clients. After a period working internationally for designers including Koji Tatsuno and Romeo Gigli, he took his first big step up the fashion ladder when the collection he created for his masters degree was bought in its entirety by influential stylist Isabella Blow.

While Blow is often credited with discovering McQueen, it was his work over the years that followed that caused him to become a name synonymous with boundary-pushing design and a new wave of Brit-chic. He was named British Designer of the Year on four occasions between 1996 and 2003, and it was during this time that he was given the role of head designer at Givenchy, succeeding John Galliano. Following this, his solo efforts included working with Icelandic pop starlet Bjork to produce costumes for her 1997 album Homogenic, before striking a deal with Gucci that allowed him to open his own branded stores all over the world. Subsequently, he has partnered with sportswear giant Puma and cosmetics company MAC – all the while managing to grace the pages of both the fashion and celebrity glossies on a regular basis as the label of choice for everyone from Sarah Jessica Parker to Lady Gaga.

Unfortunately, McQueen’s career was not always so pinned to the mainstream and at one time it would seem ludicrous to suggest that his name would be anywhere near a Royal Wedding. One of his earliest credits was in the 1990s, when he re-introduced a style of low-cut trousers that came to be known as ‘bumsters’. Worn by Kate Moss in his 1995-6 spring/summer collection, they were certainly a success, but proved very controversial. This of course wasn’t helped when he named his next runway piece Highland Rape. During his stint in Paris, the designer was also very much known as the enfant terrible of the fashion world, although it was a tag his Doc Marten boots and closely cropped hair would suggest he was happy with. It was perhaps this ability to paradoxically walk the line between innovation and commercial success that caused Alexandra Shulman, editor of British Vogue, to say of him on his death: “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.”

In early 2010, it was announced that the Alexander McQueen label would continue to trade after his death, as it was thought that this would be in-keeping with his wishes. The fashion house was reportedly around £32 million in debt, but with The Gucci Group still operating a controlling stake, it was decided there was a legacy worth keeping alive. Sarah Burton was installed as creative director in May, having worked at Alexander’s side for over 14 years, and was described by Gucci president and CEO Robert Polet as “a real talent” that had “a close understanding of the brand and the vision necessary to take it forward.”

It was a gamble that seems to have paid off, as Burton has steered the label towards a massive win with the commission of the Royal gown worn by the Duchess of Cambridge on that memorable day in April, as well as the award nominations that have followed as a result. While the princess’ motives for choosing such a modern yet controversial design house for such an important occasion are likely to stay a secret, as one of her first royal decisions she appears to have played it just perfectly. Raising the name of Alexander McQueen to heights its creator would no doubt have been proud.

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