Natural Dis-tinction, Un-Natural Selection

McQueen’s Spring/Summer 2009 collection Natural Dis-tinction, Un-Natural Selection was a pioneering exploration of digital print design that significantly contributed to the widespread (and ongoing) adoption of this technique in the fashion industry.Digitally manipulated images of crystals patterning this pair of dresses exemplify the collection’s themes—and McQueen’s fascination—with the interplay between the natural and the artificial. The designer and his team achieved idealized silhouettes by engineering print placements on fabric in accordance with the shape of garment patterns. The resulting compositions produced artful, multidimensional effects previously unseen in dress.