Tag: fashion designer

Paco Rabanne, the rebel designer, dies at 88: A look at his journey

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Spanish-born designer Paco Rabanne, who is known for his perfumes and metallic space-age fashion, has died at the age of 88. Rabanne died at his home in the Brittany region town of Portsall, France.

“The House of Paco Rabanne wishes to honour our visionary designer and founder who passed away today at the age of 88. Among the most seminal fashion figures of the 20th Century, his legacy will remain,” Puig, the fashion and beauty group that owns his fashion house, announced on Friday.

Rabanne was known as a rebel designer who collaborated with the family-owned Puig, a Spanish company. Puig also owns other design houses, including Nina Ricci, Jean Paul Gaultier, Caroline Herrera and Dries Van Noten and fragrance brands like Byredo and Penhaligon’s.

Who was Paco Rabanne?

Born as Francisco Rabaneda Cuervo in 1934, Paco Rabanne fled the Spanish Basque country at age 5 during the Spanish Civil War and took the name of Paco Rabanne while living in France. There, he studied architecture at Ecole des Beaux Arts and graduated in 1964.

In 1965, he launched his design career by exhibiting a line of 12 contemporary outfits, The Unwearables. In 1966, he used plastic, paper and metal for his innovative designs.

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Coco Chanel reportedly called Rabanne “the metallurgist of fashion”.

Many of Rabanne’s designs had a touch of an architect in them which made his designs stand out.

Rabanne achieved recognition and fame for designing costumes for films like Barbarella. His outfits have been worn by Mylène Farmer, Françoise Hardy, Brigette Bardot, Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and many more.

In 1968, Rabanne collaborated with Puig to produce Paco Rabanne fragrances which are now known worldwide.

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Rabanne also gave other designers the opportunity to start their careers and David Peck, a designer from Houston, worked with Rabanne before the launch of his eponymous line.

Paco Rabanne was regarded as a man of multi-dimensional talents, some of which garnered him success while others made him infamous.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Haute-couture designer and fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld dies at 85

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

German haute-couture designer Karl Lagerfeld, artistic director at Chanel and an icon of the fashion industry with his extravagant outfits and striking catwalks, has died aged 85.

Instantly recognisable in his dark suits, pony-tailed white hair and sunglasses, Lagerfeld was best known for his association with Chanel but delivered collections for LVMH’s Fendi and his own eponymous label.

Rumours of Lagerfeld’s ill-health had swirled after he failed to show up at Chanel’s January show in Paris for his customary bow.

Chanel chief executive Alain Wertheimer recalled how he had given carte blanche to Lagerfeld in the early 1980s to reinvent the brand, from the Chanel jacket and suit to its tweeds and two-tone shoes.

“Thanks to his creative genius, generosity and exceptional intuition, Karl Lagerfeld was ahead of his time, which widely contributed to the House of Chanel’s success throughout the world,” Wertheimer said in a statement.

A true craftsman who combined artistic instinct, business acumen and commensurate ego, Lagerfeld was known for his strikingly visual fashion show displays.

LVMH chairman and chief executive Bernard Arnault said the fashion world had lost a creative genius who helped make Paris the fashion capital of the world, and Fendi one of the most innovative Italian houses.

“I will always remember his immense imagination, his ability to conceive new trends for every season, his inexhaustible energy, the virtuosity of his drawings, his carefully guarded independence, his encyclopedic culture and his unique wit and eloquence,” Arnault said.

Born in Hamburg in 1933, Lagerfeld made his debut with designer Pierre Balmain as an apprentice before moving on to Patou and Chloe and then Italian brand Fendi.

“Kaiser Karl”

But it was after he joined French fashion house Chanel in 1983 that he gained rock-star status, credited with helping jazz up the label founded by Coco Chanel in 1910 and attracting younger clients.

On Jan. 22, Chanel hosted guests in a mocked-up Mediterranean garden for its haute-couture show. In a collection inspired by Lagerfeld’s favourite period, the eighteenth century, feathers adorned new twists on the brand’s classic tweed suits, which came with ankle length or fishtail skirts.

Tributes poured in from around the world for the man affectionately nicknamed “Kaiser Karl” and “Fashion Meister”.

Britain’s Victoria Beckham wrote on Instagram: “So incredibly sad to hear this. Karl was a genius and always so kind and generous to me both personally and professionally.”

Italian fashion designer Donatella Versace, sister of the late Gianni Versace and chief designer of the Versace group, wrote: “Karl your genius touched the lives of so many, especially Gianni and I. We will never forget your incredible talent and endless inspiration. We were always learning from you.”

Chanel said Virginie Viard, deputy artistic director of Chanel, would take over creative work for the brand’s collections.

French celebrity online magazine Purepeople said Lagerfeld died on Tuesday morning after being taken to hospital in Neuilly-sur-Seine just outside Paris the night before.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow