This past Tuesday, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City unveiled its newest exhibition, "Savage Beauty," a retrospective of the late Alexander McQueen. This seems like a wonderful tribute to McQueen and his utter brilliance. Regular readers of this blog know that I am a big fan of fashion... but not just any fashion. I appreciate fashion that creates something, that says something, that is theater, that is conceptual art, that is creativity itself. And no other designer I can think of can come close to what Lee Alexander McQueen did, created, and achieved in his too-short lifetime. Sure, other designers created a look that might have changed the silhouette of the time. Other designers may have advanced fashion with a well-timed brainstorm or by being able to tap into the zeitgeist and present something that resonates with fashionistas. But no one else worked on the edge and pushed the envelope of what fashion is--and remained popular, relevant and most importantly, sellable--more than McQueen (Dame Westwood and the now-unmentionable and unfortunate Galliano come close).
It still pains me to think too deeply about McQueen and what his creativity and literally stunning artistry meant--and still means--to me. I do not feel I am overstating my case when I say that his suicide robbed us of one of the most breathtakingly innovative, fertile, and visionary imaginations in history. In terms of influence and importance, his output, I truly believe, is certainly right up there with Picasso or Michelangelo or Monet. His loss is a huge loss not just for the world of fashion, but for the concepts of imagination and creativity everywhere. In a world such as this one, we can hardly afford to lose people with such vision.
And the Met's exhibit "Savage Beauty" looks like it does a marvelous job in honoring and presenting McQueen's ferocious creativity; this retrospective culls McQueen quotes, insights from his long-time assistant and now head of the house Sarah Burton, and descriptions of McQueen's inspirations for his collections, along with a dazzling display of pieces from all of McQueen's collections seen in immersive, atmospheric galleries designed to feel entirely connected to the pieces in them. If it's possible, I appreciate even more now the probing curiosity, penetrating mind, and mad genius of McQueen.
I wish I could fly to New York to see this show, but alas, I am off to Italy. So if you can't get to the Met for the show (which closes July 31), do what I did and pore over the Met's website for "Savage Beauty" (link at bottom) which features pictures and descriptions of the galleries (seen below), photos of some of the key pieces on display, and lots and lots of riveting videos all narrated by the curator of the exhibit, Andrew Bolton. Watch the the video at the end of this post for a marvelous overview of the show, in which Bolton concisely observes that McQueen used "fashion as a vehicle to express very complex ideas and concepts."
Above: Views of the galleries rendered by Joseph Bennett
Above: A frock coat from McQueen's 1992 MA graduation collection at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design entitled Jack The Ripper Stalks His Victims. The coat is of pink silk satin with a thorn print and white satin lining encapsulating human hair.
Above: A dress from the 2001 VOSS collection made of red and black ostrich feathers and actual glass medical slides painted red to resemble blood samples.
Above: McQueen often used natural and elemental materials in his creations and the dress of real oyster shells under the stunning embroidered overdress based on a nineteenth century Japanese silk screen, also from 2001's VOSS collection, is a fantastic example. McQueen also collaborated with jewelry designers and other artisans to add accessories to his collections; the necklace seen here is made by extraordinary jewelry designer Shaun Leane from Tahitian pearls and silver.
Above: Another example of McQueen's use of natural materials is this Romantic dress entirely of pheasant feathers from his '06-'07 collection The Widows of Culloden. (Read the "Savage Beauty" website for descriptions and explanations about the inspiration for this incredible collection.
Above: The iconic antler dress also from The Widows of Culloden collection.
Above: Created for double-amputee and Paralympics athlete Aimee Mullins (who also appeared in Matthew Barney's epic CREMASTER 3 film/ art installation), this ensemble featured a pair of legs for Aimee, seen here wearing them on the runway, carved from solid ash.
"Oh, By The Way" is my digital scrap book of things I like, things I would share with a close friend and say: “Oh, by the way, do you know of this artist/ clothing or interior designer/ model/ singer/ actor/ gorgeous man… or, have you seen this video/ photo/ film... or heard (or do you remember) this song/ band... or, read this book/ poem/ inspiring quote... or, visited this place/ museum/ restaurant/ famous building... or, have you heard of this amazing new scientific discovery?”
I am dedicated to posting the positive, the fascinating, the beautiful, the interesting, the moving, and the inspiring and uplifting. Sometimes I post cultural as well as personal observations, milestones, and remembrances. And just like life, all of these things may often have a bit of melancholy or even sadness in them, which is what makes our time here so lovely and bittersweet and precious.
Some of the photos, art, poetry, and prose are my own original work, credited with my initials, JEF. When it isn't, I always try to post links to the original source material, but often I find photos on the web that are not linked or other material that is not sourced. In these instances, I post them without malice since it is assumed that such things, by being globally posted on something as uncontrollable as the internet to begin with, are in the public domain. If you identify the source of an image that is not linked, please politely let me know (without accusing me of theft) and I will be happy to provide a link. If you are the owner of an image and would prefer it be removed, I am happy to do that as well.
I hope to inspire and entertain my readers with things that inspire and entertain me. There is a startling amount of beauty and creativity in the world and it enriches us all to participate in it.
All-time Favorite Films
2001: A Space Odyssey (Kubrick)
After Hours (Hysterical, hair-raising ride through NYC at night)
Amelie
American Beauty (Alan Ball)
Baraka (Stunning, transcending—the "spiritus mundi" on film)
Belle et Bete (Cocteau)
Big Sleep, The (The epitome of film noir)
Bringing Up Baby (Hepburn & Grant—the epitome of screwball comedy)
Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover, The (Greenaway)
Crash (Cronenberg—DIFFICULT subject, not for everyone)
Don’t Look Now (Nicolas Roeg—ultimate modern gothic horror)
Drowning By Numbers (Greenaway)
Easy Rider
Edward II (Derek Jarman)
Erendira (From magic realist Marquez’ brilliant short story)
Eyes Wide Shut (Kubrick's last film)
Fearless (Jeff Bridges—life and death)
Funny Bones (Leslie Caron, Jerry Lewis, and the brilliant Lee Evans)
Holiday (Hepburn & Grant)
Howard’s End (The ultimate statement of the unfairness of class systems)
Hunger, The
Ice Storm, The
Inland Empire (David Lynch)
Interiors (Woody Allen's ode to Bergman)
Jetée, La (French short that inspired Gilliam's "12 Monkeys")
Jules et Jim (Truffaut)
Juliet of the Spirits (My favorite Fellini)
Kwaidan (4 Japanese ghost stories)
L’Age d’Or (Bunuel)
Last Temptation of Christ, The (Jesus was a shaman)
Latcho Drom (Beautiful visual documentary of Romany culture around the world)
Lion in Winter, The (Hepburn!—Like “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” but circa 1183)
Living End, The
Logan's Run
Lost Highway (David Lynch)
Magnolia
Maurice (Boy gets boy, they live happily ever after!!!!!)
Men Don’t Leave (Jessica Lange’s gorgeous delicate performance)
Nights of Cabiria, The (Fellini)
Orlando (Tilda Swinton’s pristine performance and Sally Potter’s ravishing visuals)
Orphée (HEAVEN! Cocteau was a genius)
Pennies From Heaven (Steve Martin/ stunning Edward Hopper sets!)
Philadelphia Story, The (Hepburn)
Pillow Book, The (Greenaway)
Planet of the Apes (1968...NOT 2001!)
Postman Always Rings Twice, The (Nicholson/Lange--WOW)
Prospero’s Books (Greenaway)
Rebel Without a Cause ("I got the bullets!")
Satyricon (Fellini)
Shining, The (Kubrick)
Thin Red Line, The (Terrence Malick--existential poetry cleverly disguised as a war film)
Titus (Julie Taymor does Shakespeare)
Tommy (Brilliant, audacious Ken Russell film of The Who's rock opera)
Tree Of Life, The (Terrence Malick masterpiece)
Un Chien Andalou (Bunuel and Dali, need more be said?)
Wall,The (Pink Floyd)
Wings of Desire (All the feelings of the entire human race in one film)
Woman of the Year (Dated yet charming Hepburn vehicle)
Zabriskie Point (Empty, open, classic early 70s)
ZOO, A Zed and Two Noughts (Greenaway)
The Sounds My Soul Makes: Music
Annie Lennox
Brian Eno
Cocteau Twins
David Bowie
David Sylvian
Dead Can Dance
Durutti Column
Elbow
Everything But the Girl
Gang of Four
Gem Club
Goldfrapp
Joni Mitchell
José González
Junip
Kate Bush
Laurie Anderson
M83
Morrissey
Nine Inch Nails
Peter Gabriel
Peter Murphy
Rickie Lee Jones
Sigur Ros
Simple Minds
Smiths, The
Sufjan Stevens
Talk Talk
Tears For Fears
This Mortal Coil
Tori Amos
William Orbit
Zero 7
Important Books That Have Influenced Me
100 Years of Solitude—Gabriel Garcia Marquez
A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind in the Doorway (for young people but worth it)—Madeleine L’Engle
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