Sarah Burton Presents a "Love Letter to Women" for Alexander McQueen Fall 2020

Featuring heart motifs, quilting and two curve models on the runway.

Paloma Elsesser at Alexander McQueen’s Fall 2020 show.

Alexander McQueen is a house that knows how to conjure romance through clothes. There’s a lot to love about its pieces: the attention to detail, the awe-inducing craftsmanship, the bold use of color, the constant references to its extensive archive. That was on full display at its Fall 2020 show during Paris Fashion Week, where creative director Sarah Burton presented a collection that, in her words, “is a love letter to women and to families, colleagues and friends.”

“We went to Wales and were inspired by the warmth of its artistic and poetic heritage, by its folklore and the soul of its craft,” Burton explained in the show notes. “The woman is courageous, grounded, bold: heroic. There is a sense of protection in the clothes, of safety and comfort, evoked through quilting and blankets. The hearts are a symbol of togetherness, of being there for others.”

Given this theme, it’s worth noting that the Alexander McQueen show has been one of only a handful of instances where we’ve seen curve models on the runway at Fall 2020 Paris Fashion Week. Paloma Elsesser and Jill Kortleve both walked. (The former was also cast in Lanvin’s latest outing, while the latter appeared at both Mugler and Valentino this season.) At times, it feels like the conversation around size diversity hasn’t reached the European legs of fashion week — and even during the New York, there was much to be desired from the Fall 2020 showings. So it’s exciting to see Elsesser and Kortleve in this high-fashion context, wearing such stunning designs. More of this, please.

See every look from Alexander McQueen’s Fall 2020 collection in the gallery below.