The Dominican designer Oscar de la Renta had to die at 82 years of age for me to find out his very Hellenic middle name, taken on from his mother's brother side, shame on me. Aristides, "of an excellent kind". How apt!
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| Amal Clooney's wedding dress was designed by Oscar de la Renta, photo via Vogue |
The multi-awarded trainee of Cristóbal Balenciaga, and then at some point head designer for Balmain, who truly loved and cherished women throughout his opus, soon showed a keen eye for color, for red carpet gowns and for ensembles that dressed First Ladies and Hollywood film stars alike to great aplomb. He also designed Torguga Bay, a small boutique hotel, among the best in the world. And of course he diversified into elegant perfumes right from the 1970s onwards:
Oscar original (1977), several
Oscar flankers,
So La Renta,
Ruffles,
Volupte,
Something Blue, Live in Love, Esprit d'Oscar…
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| dresses from the Fall 2012 colection |
Fern Mallis, Executive Director of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, had called him some years back "The Sultan of Suave". You couldn't have done better than that if you tried.
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| from the Exhibition "Five Decades of Style" showing dresses and tailleurs worn by First Ladies |
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I found out 2 hours after they announced it in the middle of the night and was crushed. Especially when surrounded by Kardashian Kollection (?), Jessica Simpson and J Lo as designers!!
ReplyDeleteWhat sad news.
ReplyDeleteAs you know Helg - my little dog in the picture on Perfume of Life is long gone but I cannot remove him.He was much loved.
He was "Oscar" - after Oscar de la Renta !
He was a dapper dog and I do think the real Oscar de la Renta would have approved :)
I always thought that he truly loved women and I thought that because what he designed was always romantic, flattering to the body, and truly beautiful. In an occupation that sometimes seems more interested in prepubescent girls, rather than women, he was the amazing exception. May he Rest In Peace.
ReplyDeleteR.I.P - he will not be forgotten.
ReplyDeleteGreetings from Vienna:-)
Gina
Lia,
ReplyDeleteas you say....the greats are leaving us.
M,
ReplyDeleteI do recall perfectly!! It was so cute naming him Oscar both because the name is so good and the perfume reference so subtle but smart.
They're keeping each other company in a better world, I'd like to think. :-)
Ellen,
ReplyDeleteyou have articulated exactly my feelings. RIP indeed.
Gina,
ReplyDeletehe left a legacy. Thanks for remembering him and commenting here to my little tribute. :-)