Forgotten/Obscure Fashion Designers That Disappeared…

[Squizree]

I'm really curious to know which designers y'all remember from over the years that used to be in the fashion conversation but have since fallen off the grid. Perhaps because of tough competition, bad luck, or because they were a straight FLOP.

Which designers do you wish had gained more traction? Which designers are you GLAD never did?

I'll name a few:

Patrick Robinson
Luella
Esteban Cortazar

 

[nunova]

I opened this thread just to mention Luella, seems you were faster than me haha! I've been thinking about her a lot recently since I've been digging on her career a lot recently, her writing and friendship with Katie Grand which to be honest hyped her brand a lot. The Face really loved to promote her, also it was kinda ridiculous to see her write about her collection in the March 2000 feature (she wrote summaries of all though). F/W2000 chessboard sweater by her is living in my head rent free for few past months, especially after seeing how it and matching scarf were styled in few mags I found them in (Wallpaper Oct 2000 + i-D Dec 2000). I think it was her first ever runway show? I'm curious about her S/S2000 and F/W1999 which were indeed collections (per previously mentioned The Face issue).

I'd say lot of London in 90s and early 00s, was forgotten except ones that made it with own label or landed good positions at some house (McQueen, McCartney and Philo) or gained notoriety for their design (Chalayan). So many names around. For early 90s? Bella Freud, especially given how i-D really liked to hype her up during that time, alongside Joe Casely-Hayford. Middle to very end of the decade? Definitely Clements Ribeiro (and Cacharel under them, but it was 2000s), Matthew Williamson, Nicole Farhi (Arena/AH+ loved her menswear) but also I'd say Anthony Symmonds and Markus Lupfer. I forgot Antonio Berardi... Also the first wave of designers that is the archetype of current LFW designer big on concept. Arkadius is the condensed form of that. Marjan Pejoski, Sophia Kokosalaki (i-D loved her). Additionally I'd mention Emma Cook (darling of Dazed)...

Not that obscure, but I feel Alberta Ferretti got totally forgotten these times or reduced to chiffon/beaded chiffon with rest of her work ignored.

E: I forgot Ghost, the label founded by Katharine Hamnett and Tanya Sarne, it had a moment around that time too. Additionally I remembered about Atsuro Tayama... though he shown in Paris, but his label was quite often advertised in British print media.

 

[nunova]

I can't edit any more but forgot to add, but I'm glad Arkadius flopped so hard (everywhere he could, in the end fled to South America because he owed so much in taxes in Poland) but his brief success and in turn amount of London worship accelerated by him is still melting brains of wannabe creatives in Poland 25 years on somehow. He was all hype, all concept, many lies and lack of skill, honestly I wonder how true is the story about Issy Blow discovering him at this point... In reality none of UK mags cared about him compared to Pejoski, Kokosalaki, etc. Only Wallpaper* really did prominently feature his work... in context of feature on Poland. The whole myth was forged in his home country, about which I really want to write someday.

Symonds and similar 80s referential designers, also Lupfer and Robert Cary Williams (who just came again to my mind) were lost in a crowd as London basically at that time was 80s obsessed and everyone did it, each magazine had their darling they hyped up but no one really won with Luella who had better connections than anyone. She could push her work in The Face, because she was fashion features editor and Katie, as fashion director, was totally fine with that. Lupfer did some solid work which I like, but there were some technical issues in his collections (the lack of matching on pixel print tops and dresses from F/W2000 for example). Williamson wouldn't fly these times by amount of Indian influence in his work I guess, which could be seen as appropriative and by 2000s he moved to NY but seems after that everyone stopped caring about him in Britain I think?

 

[MulletProof]

^ Robert Cary Williams was great… but he turned out to be a violent piece of s*t who hated women but mostly his wife. I can’t be bothered to confirm my memories but I VAGUELY remember looking him up some years ago and that he is now a mechanic or something..


I miss Emma Cook, Cathy Pill but mostly Bruno Pieters.. wish they could’ve gotten more support to navigate the crisis of the late 00s.

 

[nunova]

^ Robert Cary Williams was great… but he turned out to be a violent piece of s*t who hated women but mostly his wife. I can’t be bothered to confirm my memories but I VAGUELY remember looking him up some years ago and that he is now a mechanic or something..

This is actually a big news to me, actually. Is there anything summing up what led to his demise? Much I know about his work is only praise and hype from archival magazines I own.

 

[BalkaniStaCouture]

I really miss Ivana Omazić. Omazić was a former consultant for Romeo Gigli, Prada, Jil Sander and Miu Miu. Omazić was main designer for Céline from 2004 until 2008. And from 2012 for Maison Margiela.

 

[MulletProof]

This is actually a big news to me, actually. Is there anything summing up what led to his demise? Much I know about his work is only praise and hype from archival magazines I own.

The Times did a comprehensive timeline in 2014 (click) when he was trying to get back in the industry by launching a website with 4 t-shirts lol. There wasn't a lot of info at the time.. and I think we also tended to be okay with always separating the art from the artist. Vogue UK claimed he 'withdrew' in 2009 and even in that Times article, they made sure to introduce the partner as a 'wild party animal' before getting into why she's being mentioned in the first place. In reality, he was banned from LFW, went broke because his business was already struggling (he even sold his car and tried to keep the business alive from his parents' home ) and the 40-week sentence was probably the last straw cause he was spared from jail at the victim's request but had to devote his time to community service, couldn't drive, had to pay for the court-mandated rehab..

Hopefully he's doing better removed from that scene and staying sober. His ex is doing great it seems (she remarried and ironically, seems fairly successful in fashion).

 

[PDFSD]

was not easy to find these names but here are a few:

Ancora Boy
PPP
Anthony Vaccarello
Matthieu Blazy
JWA
Pieter Mulier
Raf Simons
Maximilian Davis
PS Boys
Maria Grazia Chiuri
Virginie Viard
Frida Giannini
new Valentino creative director
new Moschino creative director
new Mcqueen creative director
new Gucci creative director
new Balmain creative director
old Balmain creative director
etc

 

[Phuel]

^^^ So mean!

Alway adored John Bartlett. And such a waste what's become of Lucas Ossendrijver after Lanvin of course.

 

[youthinasia]

I loved Bruno Pieter’s Boss collection for Spring 2010.

Jens Laugesen is another one that comes to mind.

Pedro Lourenco, great Fall 2010 collection. Is he still at Puma?

 

[Axel Mendoza]

Peachoo + Krejberg

 

[MulletProof]

Peachoo + Krejberg

They were done so dirty by the Vogue Paris gang! literally pushed out of PFW in favor of that one new designer with a lineup of supers (sponsored by VP of course) whose career never even made it to the ranks of one-hit wonders and who is so forgotten I can’t remember the name to add him to this thread lmao. Haakan? Hakan? Hakon? who even cares..

 

[Lola701]

Rodolfo Pagliangula
Paolo Melim Andersson
Gabrielle Greiss
Filippo Grazzioli
Marco Zannini
John Ray


But I feel like we can throw all the bright stars of the « young scene from London and NYC » from the 2010’s. From Thakoon to Thomas Tait. From Sies Marjan to Peter Do.

I feel like I can also throw Marine Serre in the mix. All those Demna’s collateral damages aren’t getting the best slice of the pie..(Looking a you Martine Rose)

They were done so dirty by the Vogue Paris gang! literally pushed out of PFW in favor of that one new designer with a lineup of supers (sponsored by VP of course) whose career never even made it to the ranks of one-hit wonders and who is so forgotten I can’t remember the name to add him to this thread lmao. Haakan? Hakan? Hakon? who even cares..

Hakaan! I was having a discussion about him with another TFSer.
More than sponsored by VP: the closeness with Mert and Marcus. All of that for what?
Considering what he produced post his VP/Paris period, that aesthetic wasn’t even authentic in the first place.
It was made for a specific appeal and it never took off. They tried to recreate a Balmain/Emmanuelle Alt thing and it flopped.

 

[jeanclaude]

I remember Tristan Webber, Rad Hourani, Richard Tyler, Mark Eisen, Isaac Mizrahi, that abomination named "Heatherette", Imitation of Christ, Fake London, Cristina Ortiz (for Lanvin), Dai Ress, Marc Audibet, Josephus Thimister, Adeline André...

 

[Starry]

Paolo Melim Andersson

oh I love his collections for Chloe! That first one and last one (both Fall/Winter collections) left me very deep impression. Maybe someone has mentioned before but dear Lola, do you know why he left (or was fired by) Chloe so quickly?

 

[Squizree]

I remember Tristan Webber, Rad Hourani, Richard Tyler, Mark Eisen, Isaac Mizrahi, that abomination named "Heatherette", Imitation of Christ, Fake London, Cristina Ortiz (for Lanvin), Dai Ress, Marc Audibet, Josephus Thimister, Adeline André...

I loved Cristina Ortiz! She's the fully evolved form of Frida Gianini. For both Lanvin AND Ferragamo. F/W 08 remains ESSENTIAL. I believe she does jewelry now.

Josephus Thimister is iconic but not sure about forgotten. I'd like to think he left a legacy behind.

 

[Lola701]

I remember Tristan Webber, Rad Hourani, Richard Tyler, Mark Eisen, Isaac Mizrahi, that abomination named "Heatherette", Imitation of Christ, Fake London, Cristina Ortiz (for Lanvin), Dai Ress, Marc Audibet, Josephus Thimister, Adeline André...

Ohhhhhh!
That list goes way back!
Richard Tyler! Isaac Mizrahi! I wonder btw how he has managed to remain a kind of cultural figure in the US without having anything substantial to show in order to maintain his relevancy.
Marc Audibet took over a house 2 years ago if I remember well. But quite a difficult man. It may not have helped. Most of his career was done in Italy though and there has been quite a lot of generational change in Paris.

Rad Hourani! Wow!
I think about Todd Lynn…That kind of aesthetic wasn’t meant to survive in a way no?

oh I love his collections for Chloe! That first one and last one (both Fall/Winter collections) left me very deep impression. Maybe someone has mentioned before but dear Lola, do you know why he left (or was fired by) Chloe so quickly?

He was too edgy for Chloe. His first few collections didn’t performed well. Department stores were still powerful and I think the buyers didn’t necessarily liked it. It was a bit too Marni and it may have scared the clientele.

The unfortunate irony was that his prefall 2008 and his FW2008 collections, actually did better. He was fired and those collections provided 2 hits for Chloe: The Suzanna Boots and the Paraty bag.

His FW2008 is still to this day my favorite Chloe collection ever in the modern era! Those shoes! I need to find them! They are probably somewhere in all my stuff lol!

 

[jeanclaude]

Marc Audibet took over a house 2 years ago if I remember well. But quite a difficult man. It may not have helped. Most of his career was done in Italy though and there has been quite a lot of generational change in Paris.

He was hired at Mila Schon (not sure if he is still there)...I love his clothes, I discovered about him in 1995, when he was at Prada.

digitalnewsfashion.com/

 

[jeanclaude]

I add another one: Ocimar Versolato.

 

[Kanzai]

I always like Damir Doma so yeah, it’s him.