Fashion Designers: Marc Jacobs
by
findingDulcinea Staff
American fashion super star Marc Jacobs rose through the ranks from an awkward New York design school student to become a major force in the fashion world. His ironic street sensibility made him the king of understated cool with his Marc Jacobs line. Simultaneously, his sense of femininity and refined sophistication led him to direct one of the world’s most popular luxury brands at Louis Vuitton.
A New York Designer
Marc Jacobs was born in 1963 in New York City. His love of fashion began early, learning to embroider from his sister and to knit from his grandmother. He attended the High School of Art and Design and went on to study fashion at Parsons School of Design. Entering the industry right out of school, he designed under several labels, including Perry Ellis. At Perry Ellis, Jacobs became famous for designing the legendary grunge collection before getting laid off for being a bit too radical for the contemporary sportswear brand.
Source: Marc Jacobs
Marc Jacobs started his eponymous line in 1994, presenting his idea of post-grunge glamour. His company has since grown to include a widely popular diffusion line called Marc by Marc Jacobs, a children’s line called Little Marc, as well as accessories including bags, sunglasses, shoes, fragrances and novelty items. The styling varies from season to season but is always playful and very wearable. Vogue UK has a great “Who’s Who” on Marc.
Source: Vogue UK
Jacobs’s network of celebrity friends can be tracked by his ad campaigns shot by Juergen Teller. Everyone from Meg White to Victoria Beckham has posed. A favorite is the Winona Ryder ad that was shot after she “borrowed” some inventory from Saks Fifth Avenue. See the book Jacobs and Teller collaborated on with Cindy Sherman.
Source: International Center of Photography
Designing in Paris
Jacobs joined French luxury house Louis Vuitton as creative director in 1997. He modernized the brand’s appeal designing their first ever ready-to-wear line, and updated the classic luggage and handbag collection by collaborating with pop artists such as Steven Sprouse, Julie Verhoeven and Takashi Murakami.
Source: Louis Vuitton
In 2007, Marc Jacobs hooked up with filmmaker Wes Anderson for “The Darjeeling Limited” to design the characters’ dead father’s Louis Vuitton luggage.
Source: Elle
See Marc at work for Louis Vuitton in the Loïc Prigent documentary, “Marc Jacobs & Louis Vuitton,” showing periodically on the Sundance Channel. Or buy the DVD.
Source: Sundance Channel
For more, check out Jacobs's MySpace page. Connect to his favorite musicians, see the books he loves, and maybe become a friend.
Source: MySpace
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