The late Alexander McQueen was the master of transportive beauty statements, one who dreamed up fantastical hair and makeup to match the otherworldly clothes sent down the runway of his self-titled fashion house each season. Since taking the reins of the label he established in 2010, Sarah Burton, his protégée and successor, has continued the fairy tale, remaining true to the house’s DNA while putting her own artful stamp on the McQueen woman.
A close look at her version of McQueen beauty is revealing: There are the ethereal white lashes from Fall 2015, which appear frostbitten below bleached brows, while for Spring 2012, an equally fairylike gilded cap crowns models’ heads. Headpieces have long been a distinguishing house signature, but Burton’s variations (conceived in collaboration with hairstylist Guido Palau shift boldly in tone, from the pearly birdcages of Fall 2013 to the sharp sci-fi visors from the previous year.
Though typically loaded with undercurrents of futurism and strength, an eccentric romance has flowed through the shows’ most memorable looks, starting with the knotted Rapunzel braids and the silver pin helmet from her first two runway outings, and on through to spring 2019 s glowing complexions—a hint of what may come tonight, when the house s latest collection shows in Paris.
Here, 15 Burton-approved beauty proposals that prove the Alexander McQueen dream lives on.
Spring 2011
Fall 2011
Spring 2012
Fall 2012
Spring 2013
Fall 2013
Spring 2014
Fall 2014
Spring 2015
Fall 2015
Fall 2016
Spring 2017
Fall 2017
Fall 2018
Spring 2019
