alexander mcqueen: savage beauty

Wow. What an exhibit. Of course Alexander McQueen's designs are amazing and of course the craftsmanship of the garments displayed is out of this world, but curator Andrew Bolton and the team at The Metropolitan Museum of Art did much more than just show McQueen's garments, they created an experience. If I could I'd see it again. And again. For those planning on visiting The Met to see the show I recommend getting there early in the day if possible. I arrived at 11 am and had a half hour wait, by the time I left the museum it had stretched to over an hour and a half.

As waits go it's not bad, there are plenty of nice things to look at along the way, and you forget about the wait the minute you step inside the galleries. This review describes the exhibit far better than I can. For corset enthusiasts there is tons of inspiration. Awe inspiring cutting and construction. Pieces that you've seen in pictures, like the leather corset below, are unbelievably impressive when seen in person.

Alexander McQueen (British, 1969-2010)

Ensemble. No 13, spring/summer 1999

Corset of brown leather, skirt of cream silk lace; prosthetic legs of carved elm wood

Courtesy of Alexander McQueen

Photography by Sølve Sundsboø

www.metmuseum.org

The exhibition's run has been extended by one week and will now run through August 7th and beginning today, June 6th, tickets can be purchased for viewing on Mondays when the museum is normally closed. If you are anywhere near New York City it's worth making the effort to visit. If you've been already what did you think?