Your first look at Alexander McQueen’s new fragrance ad

For the first time in Sarah Burton’s six-year tenure as creative director of Alexander McQueen, the brand has released a fragrance – until now. Today marks the launch of the scent, named McQueen Parfum, and its accompanying campaign.

Shot by legendary photographer Paolo Roversi, the campaign stars Dutch model Maartje Verhoef, who has walked in a grand total of five McQueen shows, including the most recent at London Fashion Week last month. Roversi captures Verhoef, who poses in the woods of the 17th-century Chateau de Courances near Fontainebleau wearing a custom-made gown embellished with black floral appliqués,

Roversi’s images succeed in capturing the dark romance that the brand’s creative director Sarah Burton inherited from her friend and mentor, Lee Alexander McQueen himself.

Speaking on the fragrance itself, Burton says, “I wanted this fragrance to come from night flowers, the kind that exudes an eternal freshness once the day is gone... Here at McQueen, we are all about discoveries and the eternal blossom; originality in an atmosphere of tradition, craft, and daring.”

McQueen Parfum comes in the wake of the house’s AW16 womenswear show – which was staged in London, as opposed to Paris, for the first time in 15 years. The venue (the Royal Horticultural Halls in Westminster) had personal resonance for Burton – the first McQueen show she worked on was staged there too.

See exclusive behind the scenes images from the campaign shoot:

Watch the ‘making of’ Shona Heath’s window display for the fragrance below:

McQueen Parfum is available exclusively at Harrods, London on 1st March, and Alexander McQueen boutiques in London, Paris, and Monaco