Hasta La Ideas

Although fashion designer Alexander McQueen passed away earlier this year, the company that bears his name continues on and, this week, has found itself in the middle of two debates. The first finds costume designer Jany Temime in some possibly embarrassing hot water for a dress she crafted for the upcoming latest installment of the Harry Potter films. The blog Lela London was the first to spot that the dress used in an apparent pivotal scene looks uncomfortably similar to one McQueen designed in 2008, from both its general pattern to its use of feathers. So far McQueen’s company has yet to (at least publicly) act on requesting or receiving an acknowledgment, apology, or compensation, but when the two pieces are put right next to each other, it’s easy to believe that one of those might be coming. Elsewhere, and less positive for the deceased designer’s company, the Hells Angeles motorcycle group has taken McQueen’s fashion house and retailer Saks to court over copyright infringement, claiming that a number of new items currently being sold that the two had their hands in designing look too similar to the “death-head mark” the Hell’s Angeles have used as something of their official branding. The online retailer Zappos is also receiving a meeting with the group’s attorneys, as they too have been selling the merchandise. The Globe and Mail has this great slideshow, comparing one agains the other, and like with the Harry Potter debacle, it’s fairly easy to understand who carries the weight in the argument.

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