Don't miss your chance to see the showstopping creations in the 'Roses' exhibition at Alexander McQueen. Exclusive to the Bond Street store, Sarah Burton has curated a garden of flower narratives which begins with the juxtaposition of two spectacular dresses: her Red Rose dress and the floral finale dress Lee Alexander McQueen made for Sarabande.
The exhibition unfolds into an examination of the technical feats and the back and forth between present and past, nature and craft which have blossomed into so many varieties of beautiful pieces over time.
The centrepieces of the installation are two spectacular finale pieces designed around the form and energy of flowers: the swirling red Rose dress by Sarah Burton which walked as the finale of the Autumn/Winter 2019 show, and the poetic dress Lee Alexander McQueen constructed with fresh flowers for the end of the Sarabande show for Spring/Summer 2007.
The exhibition showcases how the spectacular pieces including the Red Rose dress in its petal-like 3-D form came to life. Samples of work-in-progress and background research are arranged around a studio cutting table at which practical masterclasses and interactive discussions with students will take place over the course of the exhibition's duration.
The Sarabande dress was once filled with fresh flowers. It now occupies a position at the entrance of the exhibition, alongside more pieces which have flowers and petals trapped between layers of tulle or spilling from necklines and cuffs from the same Spring/Summer 2007 collection.
Further juxtapositions of dresses with English roses, camellias, exploded carnation-shapes, garden flowers and bees unfold throughout the space in the store.
Within the exhibition, Sarah Burton relates in a typographical video how her flower iconography has sprung up, always differently, in these collections. Her account captures the exact memories behind each collection: team field-trips to gardens, historical houses, and museums, the crucial hands-on parts played by the fabric and embroidery teams, right down to the collaboration of students on placement.
'Roses' can be found on the second floor of the store until May 2020, for more information please click here.
Alexander McQueen, 27 Old Bond Street W1S 4QE
(All imagery is courtesy of Alexander McQueen, Chloe Le Drezen and Tim Beddow)