Savage Beauty

A few weeks ago I stood in line in the Met for 30 minutes pissed off, hating every tourist, and ready to buy a damn membership to cut the mile long line. But, I kept my cool and gradually approached the Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty extravaganza. Honestly, I was not expecting anything at all. I have seen the countless Plato’s Atlantis dresses on Gaga and Daphne Guiness and watched the final collection too much. But I did want to pay homage anyways. 
Almost at the entrance, I got so excited to see the dress with all the shells neatly tiled on to the bodice,  I reached for my Blackberry, about to snap a pic….NO PICTURES MA’AM! and all  through the exhibit all I heard was NO PICTURES! NO CELL PHONES! Sheeesh, it was like that old lady who gives you the stink eye when you’re phone rings in a church.
Besides the security guards , the exhibit did transfix you in a certain way. You can play a little game when looking at the designs like I did. It’s called “Guess What Materials”. I realized I knew about 50% of the materials in each dress but the rest I had to read. It was funny when some tourists walked by saying McQueen probably used angel’s hair to sew his seams. Wierd.
The first room is called Romantic Mind. It shows McQueen’s earliest talents in tailoring. This room was kind of cool since you could see where he really started out. I really got the sense that his tailoring made him memorable. The jackets in this room looked so impeccably sewn and I venture to say this room showed the soul of McQueen.

Romantic Gothic followed and this was really more of my cup of tea. Skulls, gold and lace, oh my! I really became moved upon entering this room since there was this casket filled with five looks from Angels and Demons. Approaching this casket was like walking next to McQueen’s grave for me. I had a picture of the gold feathered dress hung in my room from when I first saw it, but I had not realized how much more intricate it is in real life. I was moved by this dress and felt how hard it must have been for McQueen’s staff to make the show go on. Reading this room’s dress descriptions was like reading a witch’s cookbook: a dash of leather, a pinch of black hair, a cauldron-full of sequins, and shower in lace for Goth couture success!
The Cabinet of Curiousities was astounding. I loved seeing some old favorites and new collections I hadn’t payed attention to. The head ornaments, shoes, and bodices really showed me his imagination. A swarm of butterflies on your head, those shoes from Bad Romance that  look like they could eat you, and a machine painted dress were all here.
In the Romantic Nationalism room, all you see is McQueen tartan. The walls are made to look like it, too. Imagine that, McQueen house treatments? I’d love some Plato’s Atlantis linoleum thanks! Anyways, the tartan interested me because I hadn’t payed too much attention to it before. I felt this room showed McQueen’s rage and his roots. The room is divided in that one side shows his British heritage and the other his Scottish. The mannequin’s hips are turned into eachother almost in a bitchy fighting stance.  The more interesting part is the Highland Rape collection in the next room. The wooden walls and floor have been bashed in while the mannequins stand proudly. Although the Highland Rape collection is not about women being raped, it does give you the sense of how angry McQueen was about the injustices related to the Highland Clearances. I’m curious what McQueen would say about how he conveys a feeling in his clothes, becuase all the clothes looked as pissed as I was waiting in line.
Romantic Exoticism was cool, but the most important part was the finale of that show. The two-way mirrored box with the gruesome looking woman inside was a cool philosophical question about beauty as we saw it. I could go on, but then you wouldnt go to the exhibit ;)

Romantic Primitivism was gorgeous, but I didnt stay there too long because Romantic Naturism was up next! ok, so the stand-out for me was the dress made out of fresh flowers which decayed over time. Such a brilliant/simple idea, but so complex, no? I see that McQueen was like a couture boy scout in this dress. the dress ages as you do. The flowers flake off likfe your youth does.  Everything looks like he played god and created bodices out of lace and flowers and Armadillo shoes. Imagine Eve in a pair of Armadillos? I’d eat that apple seeds and all.
Plato’s Atlantis was the final collection in the exhibit. I just couldnt leave the exhibit when I saw these clothes. All of the clothes, hats, and shoes could not keep me from asking myself: where did this genius come from? I know we look at these things and say “he must’ve been crazy”, “he worked so hard”, ” he sees things we don’t.” But McQueen was an artist for us, he didnt design for just Kate Moss or just to sell out; he did it so we could see fairy tales come true in fashion, passion, and life.