Force of Nature

The Victoria and Albert Museum in London is celebrating one of the world’s most legendary designers from March 14 to July 19. Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty is the first and largest retrospective of the British icon’s work to be presented in Europe. Although the original show took place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 2011, McQueen, who died the previous year, said, “London’s where I was brought up. It’s where my heart is and where I get my inspiration.” A butterfly headdress (seen here), a piece in the exhibition, is made of hand-painted turkey feathers and was designed in collaboration with Philip Treacy for the Alexander McQueen Spring/Summer 2008 collection. The look was inspired by Elizabeth Howe, a woman accused of practicing witchcraft during the Salem witch trials in 1692. --Lisa Bruckenstein