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In the pantheon of American fashion
designers, Halston reigns supreme. A new biography of the American
clothing designer follows his career from the early days as a milliner
for Bergdorf Goodman through his immense influence on international
couture.
"He mixed couture-level garment
construction with the reality of modern lifestyles," write the authors
of "Halston: An American Original" (HarperCollins, £29.75 at amazon.co.uk).
"Both in spirit and in detail, he led fashion's redefinition from
the pie-in-the-sky dictates of a handful of designers to apparel
driven by women's needs."
In 1959 Halston - born Roy Frowick
Halston in 1932 in Des Moines, Iowa - left Chicago for NYC to work
for the famed French milliner Lilly Daché. He was named co-designer
at Daché after only one year. Soon thereafter he accepted a position
at Bergdorf Goodman, a fashionable New York department store, where
he charmed his clients and made a name for himself. After two years
at Bergdorf he succeeded in becoming the store’s first designer
to have his name placed in the hats he designed.
In 1962 he designed the famous pill
box hat worn by Jackie Kennedy at the President’s inaugural, making
the Halston name a household word. Later that year he was bestowed
the Coty’s Fashion Critics Award. In 1966 Halston designed his first
ready to wear collection for Bergdorf Goodman.
He opened his own salon in 1968
and became the toast of New York’s fashion society. His close circle
of friends and clients would come to include some of the most fascinating
men and women in the world, among them Liza Minnelli, Jacqueline
Kennedy Onassis, Andy Warhol, Mick and Bianca Jagger, and Elizabeth
Taylor.
Halston’s career sky-rocketed during
the 1970’s and his designs set the standard for American designers.
He reintroduced the twinset, made cashmere chic again and reinvented
the caftan. The Halston name became synonymous with classically
cut, simple, spare and elegant designs, a phenomenally successful
fragrance line and the fabric known as "Ultra suede". He was the
undisputed high priest of fashion. He went on to design and license
his name on thirty-one different licensing products including a
range of home linen, uniforms for Braniff International Airlines
and a line of luggage.
Throughout most of the seventies
he epitomized the glamour and decadence of the era, becoming a central
figure in the nightlife scene of New York’s Studio 54 disco and
eventually succumbing to the ravages of acquired immune deficiency
syndrome (AIDS) in 1990.
But the name Halston is back in
fashion since 1998, thanks to actress Minnie Driver wearing their
stunning red evening gown to the Oscars that year and receiving
world-wide press coverage.
For the Spring/Summer 2001 collection,
Halston brought 70's ultra-suede into the 21st century. The signature
70's shirtdress received a very enthusiastic welcome. Other high
points during the fashion show were the leopard print chiffon dresses
and blond and gold lace tops with gold leather pants. A bronze tennis
sweater and "Fort Knox" T-shirt dress shimmered down the catwalk.
A sexy but practical piece was a black "Turn-Around" dress that
could be pinched and gathered either in the front or the back.
Pictured above: One of the coloured
silkscreen prints by Andy Warhol used as in-store displays for Halston.
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