Andrew Bolton (1) (1966–)
Author of Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty
For other authors named Andrew Bolton, see the disambiguation page.
About the Author
Image credit: The Albareh Daily
Works by Andrew Bolton
Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy (Metropolitan Museum of Art Publications) (2008) 70 copies, 1 review
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Bolton, Andrew
- Birthdate
- 1966
- Gender
- male
- Nationality
- UK
- Associated Place (for map)
- UK
Members
Reviews
Alexander McQueen is my favourite fashion designer, with competition from Gareth Pugh, Vivienne Westwood, and Thierry Mugler. I was lucky enough to see the Savage Beauty exhibition when it was at the V&A in London back in 2015. It's one of the best exhibitions I've ever been to and I found it absolutely beguiling. Goodreads reminded me of it by recommending the exhibition catalogue, perhaps the third good quality recommendation the algorithm has given me in nearly ten years. I was delighted show more to find that the library had a borrowable copy of this sumptuous hardback volume, with its eerie cover hologram. It must make a very spooky coffee table book, as the eyes follow you and manifest in the stylised skull before the rest of McQueen's face.
In addition to being a very striking object, the book records the Savage Beauty exhibition beautifully. A good preface briefly recounts Alexander McQueen's biography. At the end there is an interview with Sarah Burton, who took over the fashion house after McQueen's tragic death. I found both of these fascinating and informative. Together with images of the garments exhibited in Savage Beauty, I was powerfully reminded of why I love Alexander McQueen designs. He was an incredible tailor and his garments always have an exquisite and distinctive silhouette, usually with the waist emphasised. His influences mixed the gothic, romantic, historical, and environmental. Some of his quotes express the severe and unapproachable vibes that I want from clothing:
It's hard to find garments like that amid the high street's shapeless viscose and denim. McQueen's collections were art. As Burton says:
The Savage Beauty exhibition and catalogue are a wonderful tribute to McQueen. I also recommend [b:Alexander McQueen: Genius of a Generation|7981812|Alexander McQueen Genius of a Generation|Kristin Knox|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347413042l/7981812._SX50_.jpg|12419887] to fans of his work. show less
In addition to being a very striking object, the book records the Savage Beauty exhibition beautifully. A good preface briefly recounts Alexander McQueen's biography. At the end there is an interview with Sarah Burton, who took over the fashion house after McQueen's tragic death. I found both of these fascinating and informative. Together with images of the garments exhibited in Savage Beauty, I was powerfully reminded of why I love Alexander McQueen designs. He was an incredible tailor and his garments always have an exquisite and distinctive silhouette, usually with the waist emphasised. His influences mixed the gothic, romantic, historical, and environmental. Some of his quotes express the severe and unapproachable vibes that I want from clothing:
"When you see a woman wearing McQueen, there's a certain hardness to the clothes that makes her look powerful. It kind of fends people off."
"It's almost like putting armour on a woman. It's a very psychological way of dressing."
It's hard to find garments like that amid the high street's shapeless viscose and denim. McQueen's collections were art. As Burton says:
...he always called himself a designer, not an artist. He was a showman more than anything. Still, when you think about how he designed, it did feel more about art. It was never, "Oh, is this comfortable?" It was all about the vision and the head-to-toe look of it. When you saw the models lining up, it was so clear and so direct. Lee was a designer who was making a world and telling a story. Sometimes it was on such a level that maybe the fashion audience wasn't the right audience to tell it to, but what audience was right? That's the problem I think he had. The stigma: is it fashion? Is it art? But if it's not making money, you can't do these amazing shows. Lee did care about the commercial side of the industry, but what most people remember are the shows.
The Savage Beauty exhibition and catalogue are a wonderful tribute to McQueen. I also recommend [b:Alexander McQueen: Genius of a Generation|7981812|Alexander McQueen Genius of a Generation|Kristin Knox|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347413042l/7981812._SX50_.jpg|12419887] to fans of his work. show less
I don’t know if I’ll ever get over not being able to buy an exhibition book of the British Library’s Punk 1976-78 exhibition, but at least I can assuage my woes with exhibition books like this one. Not only does it give a wonderful representation of the couture clothing displayed in this exhibit, but it paired the new couture with images of the 1970s punk original inspirations. It may be an extremely simple presentation (and not really based on the exhibition space at all), but the show more simplicity really works in this case to make an easy to explore collection. show less
I picked this up after seeing the exhibit at the Met. The pictures are lovely, though there could have been more detail shots - McQueen's construction is incredible and you have to look closely at the pictures to see it. The pictures are full page, with the details of collection from which the piece came, year, materials, owner are in an appendix. It's a coffee table book, with not quite enough supplementary text to totally feel worth the cover price - there is a short bio, but I mostly got show more the sense the McQueen was a very private person, though incredibly driven. They do give references for all the magazine quotes, so I might try to track down a few of those articles. show less
This richly illustrated book explores how radical couture, avant-garde sportswear, and state-of-the-art military garments―as seen through the lens of the superhero―can be metaphors for sex, power, and politics.
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Statistics
- Works
- 19
- Members
- 1,377
- Popularity
- #18,669
- Rating
- 4.3
- Reviews
- 11
- ISBNs
- 51
- Languages
- 1