Alexander McQueen was one of the most inventive and provocative fashion designers of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Renowned for his intimate knowledge of garment construction, McQueen is remembered for his ability to push the boundaries of fashion with his exquisite tailoring, which often altered the shape of the female body, as well as by incorporating diverse and challenging cultural and political themes into his designs. Indeed, McQueen garnered international press and accolades for his superbly tailored garments and consummate showmanship throughout his nineteen-year career, until his suicide in 2010. His final collection, for which this dress was conceived, was inspired by Byzantine art and Old Master paintings and was posthumously dubbed the “Angels and Demons” collection. McQueen drew upon paintings and altarpieces by Hans Memling, Hieronymus Bosch, and Sandro Botticelli, among other artists, for the collection’s patterns. Both full artworks and details were captured and woven by jacquard loom into textiles. In contrast to his preceding collection— his technology-inspired Spring/Summer 2010 “Plato’s Atlantis” line—McQueen’s Fall/Winter 2010 designs emphasized handcraftsmanship, as seen in the highly elaborate metallic embroidery that forms this dress’s main decorative interest. llc