Fashion Designer Alexander McQueen

The son of a taxi driver, Alexander McQueen was born in the East End of London in 1969. McQueen dropped out of school at the age of 16 to persue his dreams of dress making and fashion design. He went on to do an apprenticeship with Savile Row tailors Anderson & Sheppard, then went on to work for Gieves & Hawkes and the famous theatrical costumiers Angels and Bermans. While on Savile Row, McQueen's clients included influential Mikhail Gorbachev and Prince Charles of Wales.

He received his Masters degree in Fashion design from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in 1994. Upon graduation his fashion portfolio collection was bought in its entirety by famous fashion stylist Isabella Blow, who was a mentor and great friend to McQueen. Isabella Blow died in 2007, after having committed suicide in her home in Gloucestershire, at the age of 48. She is also reportly the person that suggested McQueen should change his first name from Lee to Alexander (his middle name) when he launched his fashion career.

The designer's potent mix of controversy, creativity, and technical mastery has earned him three British Designer of the Year awards between the years 1996 and 2003, one of the youngest designers to achieve such an accomplishment.

In 1996 he was named chief designer at Givenchy. Feeling creatively stifled by the couture house, McQueen left Givenchy in 2000. At the age of 20, McQueen spent a period of time working for Koji Tatsuno before traveling to Milan, Italy working for Romeo Gigli and Koji Tatsuno. He then opened his own studio in East London and has since joined the Gucci group. The opening of stores in London, Milan, and New York soon followed.

Referred to by many as the 'bad boy of fashion', McQueen launched his own label and made instant headlines with a racy, theatrical collection entitled Highland Rape that included his infamous low-cut "bumster" pants. Some call it shock tactics, some just call it radical ideas. In one of his couture shows, he used clear mannequins lit from the inside to show the clothes instead of using runway models. The mannequins were mounted in movable floors and their appearance on the stage was choreographed, giving a feeling of movement.The launching of his perfumes Kingdom, and My Queen soon followed. In 2005, McQueen collaborated with Puma to create a special line of sneakers for the shoe brand.

Despite any controversy McQueen has received in the past, he is highly recognised as a creative and innovative fashion designer, with superb tailoring skills and hard-edged street styles. His faithful celebrity following fans includes fans like David Bowie and Prodigy's Keith Flint. He also designed the "Titantic" Oscar dress for Kate Winslet in 1998 that later sold for $57,500 at auction.

More recently, paying tribute to his late friend, supporter and mentor, Isabella Blow, McQueen along with Stephen Jones dedicated the Spring 2008 Tribute Collection in her honor. The two British designers proposed one standout look after the other. The Spring 2008 Tribute Collection was a command performance, packed with thrilling fashion and contemporary pertinence.

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