Where have all the edgier designers gone?

Today, it was announced that Christophe Decarnin is officially out as creative director and head designer of the fashion house Balmain. This comes after weeks of speculation following his suspicious absence at the house's show during the Fall 2011 Paris Fashion Week.

During his time at Balmain, Decarnin became known for his über-edgy designs, making the minidress more than just sexy, popularizing skinny cargo pants and distressed t-shirts.

Decarnin isn't the only major designer generally considered edgy to have left his post over the past year. Last February, Alexander McQueen passed away and, only about a month ago, John Galliano was fired for anti-Semitic remarks.

What's strange to me isn't so much that these three were considered amongst the edgiest designers working, but that all of their departures were linked, at least in part, to emotional problems. While Balmain reps stated that it was the reason for his departure, rumors have long been flying that his reason for missing the Paris show was due to emotional issues. Some have tried to blame emotional problems for Gallianos's rant and McQueen committed suicide.

Thankfully (or somewhat so) two of these designers will probably be back. While I do think that Galliano had his firing coming; he'll go to rehab, issue a lot of apologies, meet with Jewish groups and be back within the year (isn't that what everyone does when they go on a racist rant?). Decarnin will find another post, perhaps his own line, to showcase his perspective.