Alexander McQueen: Blood Beneath the Skin - Softcover

Wilson, Andrew

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1476776741 ISBN 13: 9781476776743

Publisher: Scribner, 2016

Synopsis

The first, definitive biography of the iconic, notoriously private British fashion designer Alexander McQueen “offers new insights...and provides unprecedented access to a misunderstood soul” (The Boston Globe).

When forty-year-old Alexander McQueen committed suicide in February 2010, a shocked world mourned the loss. McQueen had risen from humble beginnings as the son of an East London taxi driver to scale the heights of fame, fortune, and glamour. He created a multimillion-dollar luxury brand that became a favorite with celebrities, including Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell. He designed clothes for the world’s most beautiful women and royalty, most famously the Duchess of Cambridge, who wore a McQueen dress on her wedding day.

But behind the confident facade and bad-boy image, lay a sensitive soul who struggled to survive in the ruthless world of fashion. As the pressures of work intensified, McQueen became increasingly dependent on the drugs that contributed to his tragic end. Meanwhile, his failure to find lasting love in a string of boyfriends only added to his despair. And then there were the secrets that haunted his sleep...

A modern-day fairy tale infused with the darkness of a Greek tragedy, Alexander McQueen provides “a thorough and emotionally compelling exploration...of a complex and enigmatic artist” (Publishers Weekly). Andrew Wilson’s “magnificent” (The Independent, UK) and “compelling and heavily researched bio” (Entertainment Weekly), featuring never-before-seen photographs and rare interviews, dispels myths, corrects inaccuracies, and shares new insights into McQueen’s private life and the source of his creative genius.

About this title

Review

'Explores the source of the fashion designer's genius and the links between his dark work and troubled personal life.' Irish Times

'McQueen's story is almost mythical. It has all the elements of Icarus - he flew too close to the sun and was burned by his aspirations.' Grazia 'The Alexander McQueen fashion house has been accused of distancing itself from the dark genius of its founder after biographies of him were banned from an exhibition of his work. In an interview with The Times Magazine, Wilson said "the company that bears Lee's name and now an international brand did not want to co-operate with the book."' -- The Times T2

'McQueen defied the expectations of his birth, only to be hunted down by personal demons.' The Times

'Wilson's insights offer a sensitive take on a troubled soul: from difficult beginnings in a working class family and childhood abuse at the hands of his violent-tempered brother-in-law to his prodigious talent and A-list lifestyle, hampered by depression.' -- The Times

'Wilson is the first biographer to have enjoyed the 'blessing and cooperation of the McQueen family'. His narrative interweaves scores of testimonials from former colleagues, students, friends, fellow-clubbers and sexual partners... [it] remind[s] us that McQueen s extraordinary imagination, though clouded with melancholy and spiked with savagery, changed the way we look at fashion for ever' Financial Times

'Andrew Wilson's heartbreaking biography of McQueen takes an unflinching look at the personal price McQueen paid for this supposed poetry. This seems like a fan's book at first glance written 'with the support of the McQueen family' but it's a wonderfully readable and well-researched account.' The Telegraph

'This is a deeply intelligent, fascinating book, full of insights and perceptions, and I suspect the fashion insiders won't get it because of its unflattering portrayal of their bitchy world. But everyone else will. McQueen has got in Wilson the biographer he deserves.' The Independent

'Andrew Wilson's heart-breaking biography of McQueen takes an unflinching look at the personal price McQueen paid for this supposed poetry.' -- Daily Telegraph

About the Author

Andrew Wilson is the highly acclaimed author of biographies of Patricia Highsmith, Sylvia Plath and Alexander McQueen. His first novel, The Lying Tongue, was published in 2007. His journalism has appeared in the Guardian, the Daily Telegraph, the Observer, the Sunday Times, the Daily Mail and the Washington Post.

About this edition

• Publisher: Scribner
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1476776741
• ISBN 13: 9781476776743
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 367