Alexander McQueen: After Lee

[chloehandbags]

How cheap it is to make a hasty decision on a company that was a dead man's heart and soul?

It's not a hasty decision if it was already discussed and decided upon before his death (which it, effectively, appears to have been, according to the Times article).

I said wait and see. I'm sure the company can provide a severance package to the employees while they figure out what's going to be the next move.

Why on earth do that to people, just as some sort of empty mark of respect, if it's not necessary and goes against Lee's own wishes?

It's barely been a week since he has passed and people are still shocked from it. Don't you think that some of these decisions are better made with a clear mind and not a clouded one?

These are not our decisions to make, though - so whether we have clouded minds, or not, is completely irrelevant.

The people who are now making these decisions do not have clouded minds, you can depend upon that and as I say, I think the decisions had already been made when; 'the two men decided that “we have transitioned from being the name of a designer to putting in place the building blocks of a brand” ' a few weeks ago and Lee told him; ' “That means that will be my legacy. That's something I will always leave behind.” '.

It's all there in the Times article.

if time passes, and the assistant is good, then it doesn't matter if she waited or not. That is my point. But what good does it do to make these decisions in haste? These shoes are very big to fill and it would be smart to retreat and think of the next step and not just rush into the next phase just because the assistant designer is looks to be "the right person". There are some designers who rather stay in the background and just assist the head designer because they don't want to deal with the headaches.

Of course - no one's saying that she should be forced against her will and I agree that she shouldn't be rushed into making her decision; but that is a separarate decision to whether the brand will continue, or not, whatever she may decide.

I would prefer it, personally, if she and the rest of the team took over, rather than another name; but only if she and they are happy to do that.

It's not as simple as "Lee was proud of his team, so why not?". Does anyone know that she evens WANTS this position?? Maybe she doesn't because frankly, who would want to deal with all this pressure so suddenly?

I think it should go without saying (although, I think I may have said it, anyway, earlier in the thread, or on another thread?!) that she should only take the job if she wants it.

I believe one is legally required to ask someone whether they want a job, or not, rather than just thrusting it upon them, isn't one?

For example, when Phoebe Philo left Chloe, they offered the job to Hannah Macgibbon (Phoebe's assistant) and she said she wasn't ready at that time and that was her choice; it should be the same here.

I'll repeat myself ONE MORE TIME:

Complete the collection and let the house rest until the dust settles and minds, options, and intentions are clear.

We all can repeat ourselves all we want, educo - the decision as to whether the house continued is/was Lee's and Gucci Group's to make and the decision as to whether she takes the job, or not, is the assistant designer's to make

Neither decision is/was ours to make.

 

[chiara22]

i agree with people saying he just cant be replaced...he was too much of an artist,it would be like trying to replace Picasso after he died just because his painting would get lot of money...i think gucci group is just being greedy by wanting to keep his brand on and replace him with some other designer,want to profit as much as possible from his name and legacy...

 

[bbofbalenciaga]

When i saw McQueen´s latest colletion i instantly thought about Jose Castro´s fw 2009 collection:

Vogue.es

gq.es

 

[Forwardmotionis]

Its kinda nice to see the comparison and really see the similarities.

No one can replace him but I think it’ll be interesting to see where the McQueen name goes.


I can’t make heads or tails on if I want Castro to stay true to McQueens’ slight aesthetic (I don’t know its sooo wide but mainly what comes to mind would be the sculls and crazy hats?) or should he be less McQueen and merely design FOR the house.

 

[farou7a]

^^^ Chanel and Saint Laurent did not died in such a tragic way. No disrespect, but they were way pass their prime when they passed, with already an established legacy in fashion history. They had nothing to prove. And they were fashion designers-- not artists.

McQueen was completely unique, and was still fighting strong, only beginning to carve out his legacy. His shows were visions; otherworldly, surreal and completely original. I'm sure when he commented that he would like his label to continue after his death, he was thinking more along the lines of an established house continuing on-- like Chanel and Saint Laurent. That's a very natural response from any designer.

Just my take, of course.

of course

i dont think we could compare them to McQueen though..

I like his designs, I just wouldnt directly compare them b/c their work was all too different (to me atleast)

 

[Chanelcouture09]

it would be such a waste if they closed the doors but in respect of that id hate McQueen to become another Valentino, where its passed from person to person
i think the most logical person to step in is sarah, his assistant, its worth them trying it out and lee obviously trusted her designing

 

[maxlinden]

maybe it could be a collaboration of the two??

 

[maxlinden]

^^José Castro and his assistant I meant

 

[coldlunch]

rest in peace, Lee

I think the brand Alexander McQueen should definitely continue on.
For many admirers of Lee (and I'm one of them) it might be difficult to accept the fact that a different designer will be in charge, but we should be happy that the McQueen legacy will continue on. It might not be the same and it will never be. I think it will be interesting how the McQueen sensibility will be brought to life by a different eye just like with Lagerfeld for Chanel, Galliano for Dior, and Nicolas Ghesquiere forr Balenciaga

 

[mikeijames]

^it's so true. just as chanel, dior, balenciaga, balmain, valentino, ungaro, and others represented the vanguard of their day, we will one day talk about the gallianos, mcqueens, pradas, tom fords, marc jacobs, etc of our day. it's only right that these brands go on....

 

[BerlinRocks]

Ahah I remember when Castro started his first show in Paris, his PR (Kuki) said that he's worked with McQueen ... And when journalists asked Castro, he was like "well ... i've worked there 3 days ..." ....

To b sincere, I believe it was up to McQueen to decide who's gonna follow his steps. And the name (if there is one) has already been decided, imo.

 

[Squizree]

I know it sounds extremely inconsiderate and pathetic but I wish McQueen had mentioned a successor in his notes.

 

[Drusilla_]

Ahah I remember when Castro started his first show in Paris, his PR (Kuki) said that he's worked with McQueen ... And when journalists asked Castro, he was like "well ... i've worked there 3 days ..." ....

Press releases say a lot of stuff....I remember one young designer in my country who claimed he'd done internships with Galliano and McQueen (the implication being that those would be reflected in the cut and construction of his clothes)- he'd actually done a stint of one month at each place, and spent it working on runway show productions- not on actual garment production!

To b sincere, I believe it was up to McQueen to decide who's gonna follow his steps. And the name (if there is one) has already been decided, imo.

I actually can't think of a person with the same sensibilities who could conceivably replace him. And some houses do function without a figurehead designer- look at Moschino (whose designer we hardly know the name of- it's Rosella Jardini), or even Maison Martin Margiela today. It's been barely two weeks since Lee McQueen's death- I wouldn't be surprised if they haven't fixed on a successor yet.

 

[SnowWhiteDrifted]

Now that I've (somewhat) moved on from his death.... I started thinking of what designer could take over at McQueen. And then I started wondering what the Mulleavy sisters would do with it. I feel like they have the same sort of creative energy as McQueen did, in the sense that they see clothes as more art than fashion most of the time.

My biggest concern with that, however, would be that they wouldn't be able to mold their very recognizable aesthetic to the McQueen label. And that both McQueen and Rodarte would suffer if they tried to do two labels at once.

Of course, when you don't consider the practicalities, it seems like a pretty cool idea. At least to me.

 

[Salvatore]

Now that I've (somewhat) moved on from his death.... I started thinking of what designer could take over at McQueen. And then I started wondering what the Mulleavy sisters would do with it. I feel like they have the same sort of creative energy as McQueen did, in the sense that they see clothes as more art than fashion most of the time.

My biggest concern with that, however, would be that they wouldn't be able to mold their very recognizable aesthetic to the McQueen label. And that both McQueen and Rodarte would suffer if they tried to do two labels at once.

Of course, when you don't consider the practicalities, it seems like a pretty cool idea. At least to me.

It could be interesting, but at the same time really terrible for the simple fact Alexander McQueen was a genius at cutting the Mulleavy sisters are not there yet .

 

[Scott]

^as much as adore the mulleavy's i can't see that. they really lack the incredible depth that mcqueen had. i just don't think they have the kind of technique for the kind of construction and tailoring mcqueen made look so extraordinary.

 

[Scott]

honestly,i can't really imagine anybody there. i want to but i don't think anybody could ever emulate the body of dynamism that mcqueen boasts. and if i see anybody,they only really seem to capture an element or two of his work. i mean i'd love to sit here and say you know olivier would be wonderful because of his unabashed drama or jurgi persoons who had a highly esoteric spirit and a love for romanticism and texture like lee,but jurgi was never show-y like mcqueen was. i mean jurgi was great at capturing strong,moving images(i.e. like that of my avatar)but he was never one for the 'show',the hype. miguel adrover is another...personally he learned a lot from lee and for that sense of clever provocation but again only a segment of what mcqueen was about. i just don't think anybody could really capture and maintain the kind of world mcqueen created.

 

[Jungla_Juana]

The Mulleavys, season after season, have turned out to be very one-dimensional and their RTW doesn't seem to have any soul. I feel their shows are more about gimmicks (amazons,arm tattoos, light up heels, spiky stilettos+bloody dresses).
A Mcqueen show, whatever the concept was that season, was an experience that subtly pulled at the strings of your subconcious, reminding us of unnerving things seen and felt only in dreams, often forgotten upon awakening.
Hussein Chalayan is possibly the only one that comes close to materializing dreamlike concepts as successfully as Lee but I have found his work a bit lacking recently.

 

[chloehandbags]

Now that I've (somewhat) moved on from his death.... I started thinking of what designer could take over at McQueen. And then I started wondering what the Mulleavy sisters would do with it. I feel like they have the same sort of creative energy as McQueen did, in the sense that they see clothes as more art than fashion most of the time.

My biggest concern with that, however, would be that they wouldn't be able to mold their very recognizable aesthetic to the McQueen label. And that both McQueen and Rodarte would suffer if they tried to do two labels at once.

Of course, when you don't consider the practicalities, it seems like a pretty cool idea. At least to me.

Please God, no!

 

[mikeijames]

Now that I've (somewhat) moved on from his death.... I started thinking of what designer could take over at McQueen. And then I started wondering what the Mulleavy sisters would do with it. I feel like they have the same sort of creative energy as McQueen did, in the sense that they see clothes as more art than fashion most of the time.

My biggest concern with that, however, would be that they wouldn't be able to mold their very recognizable aesthetic to the McQueen label. And that both McQueen and Rodarte would suffer if they tried to do two labels at once.

Of course, when you don't consider the practicalities, it seems like a pretty cool idea. At least to me.

this would never happen. alexander mcqueen needs a designer at the helm that has little to no personal ambition for creating a line of his own. the rodarte sisters -- no matter one's opinion of their work -- have clearly shown they want to make a name for themselves. there exist any number of ACTUAL mcqueen devotees in the design community that would happily toil away for the length of their professional careers to honor his legacy alone.