I was shocked and saddened to hear of the death of fashion designer L'Wren Scott this morning. A terrible accident, I first thought, or perhaps a sudden illness? My shock was compounded by discovering that Ms. Scott had committed suicide by hanging, in her own home, after texting an assistant to "come by." That assistant discovered her body. Her long-time partner, the Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger, was given the news while in Australia on tour, and is said to be "completely shocked and devastated."
How little we can ever know of another person.
Other than being familiar with Ms. Scott through her romance with Jagger, I admired her design work greatly. Her clothing followed the classic, clean lines of 1940s and 1950s couture; designs that were sexy without being gaudy, skimming over the female form in a natural, lovely, and elegant way. She was able to effortlessly adapt cultural fashion details from all over the world into her own style, which gave playful yet sophisticated elements to her clothing, which you may see here. No matter your body type, celebrity or civilian, you looked beautiful in Ms. Scott's designs, which requires that a designer not only have a deep understanding of fit and form, but of how clothes can make us feel, and how those feelings can translate into celebration and strength. She was a great talent.
It has been reported that Ms. Scott's design house was millions of dollars in debt, and that this may be the reason she committed suicide. It is unthinkable to most of us to feel such a profound sense of failure regarding a business that we would wish to end our existences on earth, especially when the means to clear the debt was likely more than available and would be gladly given. To choose hanging as a method of death is a very telling thing; there are such particular qualities of shame, guilt, suffering, and sadness to it, unlike other means where death is gunshot-instant or comes in a hazy pharmaceutical blackness. We can't know, unless Ms. Scott left written word, why or how she came to her decision. We just know that the pain she felt was overwhelming, and she saw no end to it.
Ms. Scott posted the most lovely photos of her travels around the world, and seemed to have such a joy and appreciation for all that she saw. From the rich colors of India to an island sunset to the little stocking-stuffers given to Mr. Jagger last Christmas, she saw and knew beauty everywhere. How tragic that she could not see it in herself.
© Copyright 2008- Marianne Spellman