ALEXANDER MCQUEEN SPRING 2022 R-T-W

Ethan Azzopardi
Oct 21, 2021
3 min read

JOIN US AS WE REVIEW MCQUEEN'S POST-PANDEMIC RUNWAY

Photos: Courtesy of Vogue Magazine and Alexander McQueen

LET'S TAKE A LOOK

Sarah Burton has, once again, made Lee Alexander McQueen a very proud man. Located on a rooftop in East London under a collapsible and reusable bubbled dome, designed by Similjan Radic, the Alexander McQueen runway depicted what was visible from out of the design house's windows — a view Burton and the McQueen team became familiar with during the pandemic. We may recognise Radic, a Chilean architect of Croatian descent, from his work creating the 2014 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London. However, for McQueen, Radic has played a much bigger role, having also designed McQueen’s Old Bond Street Store in London. The Radic “cloud”, per-se, was used as a medium to bring the audience together in one space away from the elements, but where their view, including views of Saint Paul’s Cathedral, would further this collection.

Employing Radic was a power move from Burton, as the Atelier house faced its first runway set in London in twenty years.

The runway ran like clockwork — literally — with the models walking circles around the audience until they finally stood standing, enclosing the audience in a silhouette of McQueen. The collection included cloud and weather motifs, printed on huge pieces of fabric, that were then converted into starchy dresses, where the now tailored and pleated fabric looked more like tie-dye. A voluptuous leather trench coat sat above a blue 'cloud' dress that peeped through the front opening of the coat with each step. Boy-ish tailoring was another huge factor in this collection, with several power-suits featuring sharp, masculine tailoring and shoulder pads. One suit even looked like Gomez Addams' iconic pinstriped suit, but in a good way…

‘Girly-Punk-Rock’ is the best way to interpret this collection, right down to the jewellery, which is another exciting aspect of this runway. The accessories and clothing throughout this collection harboured a feeling of inclusivity, that these pieces were for every occasion and for people from any walk or personal aesthetic of life. The models — on the whole — were tatted and androgynous, and perfectly selected for each look. But the challenge for Burton this year was balance, keeping each look in perfect symmetry between the feminine and masculine, between girly and rock-y, and metaphorically between earth and sky. Even the gossamer yellow tule dress, with its extended boning and wispy off-the-shoulder sleeves, was grounded by the basic and clean running sneakers.

Burton's silhouettes were lengthened by lowering bodices and pairing them with cropped jackets and bulbous skirts or bottoms.

As per usual, Burton's love for texture and fabrics was extruded through this collection. With the pressure to replace a martyr like McQueen, Burton's love for fabric is what makes her the only designer today able to give this house and the memory of McQueen justice. Once again, leather was a staple for this collection; the fabric's strength and waxy texture paired surprisingly well with the fragile and crude texture of tule. On the whole, the collection was playful, with straps, ties and zips allowing the customer to decide how they wanted to wear the pieces. Superstar model, Naomi Campbell, also featured in the line up, dressed in a cropped blazer, elongated bodice and tule skirt (all featuring that incredible diamante-encrusted, chandelier embroidery). No one even noticed it was Campbell — no matter how hard she fought to be the centre of attention, the clothing was just too luxurious.

Sarah Burton should be proud of her work and for coming out of the pandemic, not ignoring the changes of the new world, but using this as a crucible to recreate an iconic brand and maintain its relevance. Her work this season was timeless, beautiful and had the ability to beat so many other designers at their own game — like that black ‘almost wedding dress’ that Vivienne Westwood would die to claim was her own. Burton shows time and time again the strength that comes from using sustainable materials and up-cycling, and the power that texture and fabric truly play in the future of zero-waste fashion.