Paris remembered a genius lost this afternoon as Alexander McQueen's final ready-to-wear collection was presented - to a haunting operatic soundtrack - in a salon at the headquarters of parent company PPR.
Audience members welled up as the regal 15-piece collection, which featured drop-waist dresses, opera coats and embellished collar gowns cut in brocade, plus feathered underskirts boosting up gorgeously draped print cocktail dresses, was revealed. Each piece was cut by McQueen himself - he was part of the way through finishing the collection when he shut himself away with grief following the death of his mother, later to be found hanged.
"It was a very moving experience to take a deep and serious look at his last collection," Gucci Group chairman and chief executive Robert Polet told WWD after the show. "It showed Lee's unique talent to create pieces of beauty that touch many of your senses, leaving one enriched. Although the sense of loss afterwards, I found overwhelming."
While an undeniably emotional occasion for all involved and a fitting tribute, the presentation sought to highlight the skill of McQueen as a designer and underline the commitment of the brand to continue his name. Jonathan Akeroyd, president of Alexander McQueen, took the opportunity to note how supportive everyone had been during such a difficult period and confirmed that buyers will have access to a showroom collection of around about 160 pieces for autumn/winter 2010.
Earlier this week, a spokesperson for avant garde London designer Gareth Pugh denied that he was in talks with the Gucci Group about taking on a design role at the label.
Picture: Alexander McQueen, autumn/winter 2010, photographed by Giovanni Giannoni. See the rest of the collection here.
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