Yahoo Lifestyle Alexander McQueen Dies Aged 40
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Nicknamed the "hooligan" of British fashion, McQueen worked his way up after starting out as a teenage trainee tailor. He had been expected to unveil his new collection at Paris Fashion Week in March.
"He was found dead this morning," McQueen's communications director Samantha Garrett told Reuters by telephone.
A statement released by his office - referring to the designer by his given first name, Lee - read: "On behalf of Lee McQueen's family, Alexander McQueen today announces the tragic news that Lee McQueen, the founder and designer of the Alexander McQueen brand, has been found dead at his home.
Police said they were not treating his death as suspicious. The BBC reported that McQueen had announced the death of his mother on his Twitter site earlier this month.
McQueen's friend, the influential British fashion insider Isabella Blow who helped his career take flight, took her own life in 2007 at the age of 48.
"At this stage it is inappropriate to comment on this tragic news beyond saying that we are devastated and are sharing a sense of shock and grief with Lee's family," the statement said.
The Fashion World Reacts
marie claire publisher/editor Jackie Frank paid tribute to the designer when news reached Australia in the early hours of February 12.
"His passing is a tragic loss to the world of fashion," she says. "He was a creative genius who knew no boundaries, often pushing the social and political norms."
Read more reactions from around the world
Hooligan at Givenchy Helm
Born in a working class area of London, the youngest of six children, McQueen left school at the age of 16 and gained an apprenticeship at the traditional Savile Row tailors Anderson and Shephard, moving on to neighboring Gieves and Hawkes.
The former British Designer of the Year winner eventually gained a masters degree in fashion design from London's prestigious Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design.
McQueen had an ability to shock. An example was his autumn/winter 1995 collection "Highland Rape," which featured disheveled looking models in torn clothing.
The following year, McQueen, with his close-cropped hair, Doc Marten boots and controversial designs, was named head designer at the staid Paris couture house Givenchy.
His first collection for Givenchy was not widely considered to be a success.
But he went on to establish his own label and become part of the Gucci group of brands owned by French retailer and luxury goods group PPR, drawing in fans, customers and fame and earning a place at the top table of fashion.
"I worked closely with Lee for the last five years. His creative force was inspiring to me and all those who were fortunate to know and work with him," Robert Polet, President and CEO, Gucci Group said in a statement.
"Lee's passing will be mourned deeply. He has left us too soon; he had so much more to give, but the legacy he leaves us is a rich one and one that we will cherish and honor."
Vogue editor Alexandra Shulman praised the designer for his "brilliant imagination."
"At one level he was a master of the fantastic, creating astounding fashions shows that mixed design, technology and performance and on another he was a modern day genius whose gothic aesthetic was adopted by women the world over," Shulman wrote on the fashion bible's website.
"His death is the hugest loss to anyone who knew him and for very many who didn't."
Central Saint Martin's professor, Louise Wilson, said McQueen had a massive impact on fashion.
"A lot of people don't realize the impact he had, whether that was low-waisted jeans - he designed the bumster and it was taken up by the whole of the world, practically, how they wore their jeans, very, very low."
Didier Grumbach, president of the French couture federation, said McQueen was a great technician and creator, comparing his legacy to the late great French designer Christian Dior.
"Perhaps his house will be able to go on," he said. "When Dior disappeared, his house continued, so you never know."
New York Fashion Week Presentation
The New York Fashion Week presentation for Alexander McQueen's lower-priced line McQ was schedule for Thursday afternoon, but has been cancelled.
(Additional reporting by Elizabeth Pineau and Astrid Wendlandt in Paris; editing by Keith Weir)
Photo: Getty Images
