R.I.P. Alexander McQueen

"The British fashion industry lost one of its brightest stars yesterday with the apparent suicide of Alexander McQueen, who was found hanged at his Central London home.

The designer, 40, had been grieving over the death of his mother, Joyce, who died on February 2. He had been due to attend her funeral today.
The loss of one of the most commercially successful and respected British designers has cast a pall over next week’s London Fashion Week. Friends said that he had been under pressure to complete his autumn/winter women’s wear collection for next month’s launch in Paris. One of his lines, McQ, was due to be shown at New York Fashion Week yesterday but was cancelled.
Drew Barrymore and Ellen Page at "Whip It" premiere in Toronto Film Festival. Drew wore a yellow ruffled dress designed by Alexander McQueen from Resort 2010.Kristen Stewart (wearing a dress designed by Alexander McQueen) and Robert Pattinson photographed by Mark Seliger for Harper’s Bazaar, December 2009.

McQueen recently described the suicide of his mentor — the style icon Isabella Blow — as “the most important thing he had learnt in fashion”. During a newspaper interview conducted by his mother, McQueen was asked what was his most terrifying fear. He replied: “Dying before you.”After graduating McQueen set up his own label based in the East End of London. He went on to be named head designer at Givenchy in 1996, succeeding John Galliano, before joining forces with Gucci, which bought 51 per cent of his company.
Lindsay Lohan in Terry Richardson photoshoot for Purple Fashion Magazine, wearing a dress designed by Alexander McQueen.Anna Paquin wore a wild-print mini-dress by Alexander McQueen Spring/Summer 2010 to SAG Awards:The designer once described himself as the “pink sheep” of his family and said that he did not come out as gay until his early 20s. He had a civil partnership with the film-maker George Forsyth in 2000. However, last autumn he said that he had ended the relationship two years earlier and had started another with a porn star known as Mr Stag.

During the newspaper interview when McQueen revealed his fear of dying before his mother, she had asked him: “What makes you proud?”

“You,” he replied. “Why?” she queried. “No, ask the next one,” said McQueen. It was the only question he refused to answer. Source: women.timesonline.co.uk