Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  Opening gala – The V&A launched the exhibition with a gala attended by Victoria and David Beckham, among other celebrities.  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  Opening gala – McQueen's long-time friend Kate Moss (seen here with her husband, the musician Jamie Hince) was also in attendance.  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  Plato's Atlantis - Spring/Summer 2010 – The exhibition covers his MA graduate collection from 1992 to 2009's Plato's Atlantis, his last fully realized collection before his death in February 2011. (It spawned the vertiginous armadillo shoes popularized by Lady Gaga.)  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  Voss - Spring/Summer 2001 – Curators recreated the mirrored set from his Spring/Summer 2001 collection. At the original show, attendees sat around a glass cube. Inside, it was padded like a mental asylum cell.  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious - Autumn/Winter 2002 – The Romantic Gothic gallery focused on the Victorian elements McQueen referenced so frequently.  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  The Girl Who Lived in a Tree - Autumn/Winter 2008 – "The Girl Who Lived in a Tree" collection exemplified McQueen's interest in both storytelling and heritage. It was inspired by the British Empire, fairy tales and punk.  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  Eshu - Autumn/Winter 2000 – McQueen never shied away from unconventional materials. This coat made of synthetic hair.  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  The Widows of Culloden - Autumn/Winter 2006 – Kate Moss wore this diaphanous dress for the show finale. However, instead of having Kate walk the runway, McQueen projected her dancing hologram into a glass pyramid. (This is recreated in the exhibition.)  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  No. 13 - Spring/Summer 2001 – The high-ceiling "Cabinet of Curiosities" showcases his most creative pieces. The dress at the center of the room was spray-painted live on the runway by two robotic arms.  Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty 11 photos  Cabinet of Curiosities – Many of the accessories on show were made in collaboration with jewelers Shaun Leane and Sarah Harmarnee, as well as the milliner Philip Treacy. Some pieces were recreated especially for the exhibition.
Five years after his death, a new exhibition at the V&amp;A pays tribute to fashion's darkest, most theatrical designer.