NGV opens its blockbuster Alexander McQueen exhibition

The NGV has launched its blockbuster summer exhibition with the opening of Alexander McQueen: Mind, Mythos, Muse, a celebration of the work of legendary British fashion designer Alexander McQueen who took the fashion world by storm throughout the 1990s and 2000s.

Alexander McQueen (1969–2010) is celebrated for his conceptual and technical virtuosity.

The first major McQueen exhibition to be staged in Australia – and created through a collaboration with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and the NGV – the exhibition showcases more than 120 garments and accessories.

 Alexander McQueen: Mind, Mythos, Muse offers insight into McQueen’s far-reaching sources of inspiration, his creative processes and capacity for storytelling. Displayed alongside McQueen’s innovative designs are more than eighty artworks – spanning painting, sculpture, textiles, prints, photography and decorative arts – that help to illuminate the interdisciplinary impulse that defined his career.

Taking visitors from McQueen’s showstopping graduate collection, following his meteoric rise and exploring his lasting impact on fashion today, the exhibition showcases McQueen’s signature bold tartans and superb tailoring highlighting the technical brilliance of his designs and the bold ideas behind them.

Alexander McQueen: Mind, Mythos, Muse is the latest instalment in NGV’s Summer exhibition series which is supported by the Victorian Government. Past shows have included Gabrielle Chanel: Fashion Manifesto and The House of Dior: Seventy Years of Haute Couture.

The exhibition will be supported by a bumper program of events including NGV Friday late night openings and activities for all ages.

Victorian Minister for Creative Industries Steve Dimopoulos notes “This standout exhibition is an explosion of fashion, art and creativity, offering Victorians a rare chance to get up close to many of Alexander McQueen’s bold and influential designs.

“We’re backing NGV’s blockbuster Summer Series to deliver another must see exhibition that will draw thousands of visitors to the state, offering another highlight in a jam-packed calendar of attractions this summer that will boost local businesses and jobs.”

Alexander McQueen: Mind, Mythos, Muse opened at NGV International on Sunday, 11th December 2022 and runs until Sunday, 16th April 2023. For tickets and more information visit ngv.vic.gov.au.

Image: Installation view of The Widows of Culloden collection, autumn winter 2006-07 in Alexander McQueen: Mind, Mythos, Muse on display at NGV International from 11th December 2022 – 16th April 2023. Headpieces by Michael Schmidt. Courtesy Creative Victoria. Credit: Sean Fennessy