John Charles Galliano (born 28 November 1960) is a British fashion designer. He was the creative director of his eponymous label John Galliano and French fashion houses Givenchy and Dior.[2] From 2014 to 2024, Galliano was the creative director of Paris-based fashion house Maison Margiela.[3] Galliano has been named British Designer of the Year four times. In a 2004 poll for the BBC, he was named the fifth most influential person in British culture.[4][5]
Early life and education
Galliano was born in Gibraltar to a Gibraltarian father of Italian descent, Juan Galliano, and a Spanish mother, Ana Guillén, and has two sisters.[6] His father worked as a plumber.[7] Though registered at birth as John Charles Galliano,[1] he has given his full name in interviews as Juan Carlos Antonio Galliano-Guillén.[6] Galliano's family moved to England when he was six, settling in Streatham and later Dulwich and Brockley, in South London.[7][8] He was raised in a strict Catholic family.[9]
Galliano attended St. Anthony's Primary School, Dulwich and Wilson's Grammar School in London.[10] He went on to study at Central Saint Martins and graduated in 1984 with a first class honours degree in Fashion Design.[8] His graduating collection was inspired by the French Revolution and entitled Les Incroyables.[8] The collection received positive reviews and was bought in its entirety for resale in the London fashion boutique Browns.[8]
Career
Early career and the John Galliano label
London
Galliano then started his own eponymous label alongside long-term collaborators Amanda Harlech, at that time stylist with Harpers and Queen, and milliner Stephen Jones.[11][12][13] On the back of this success, Galliano rented studio space in London. Initially, financial backing came from Johan Brun, and when this agreement came to an end, Danish entrepreneur Ole Peder Bertelsen, owner of firm Aguecheek, who were also backing Katharine Hamnett at the time, took over. This agreement ended in 1988 and he went bankrupt after his own London-based label failed.
Paris
Controversies
Antisemitic outburst
Circa December 2010, a drunken Galliano insulted a group of Jewish women in Paris bar La Perle, saying: "I love Hitler... People like you would be dead. Your mothers, your forefathers would all be fucking gassed".[48][49][50] The video resurfaced in February 2011, just before Paris Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2011/2012.
On 25 February 2011, Dior announced their suspension of Galliano[51] including the following statement:"Because of the particularly odious character of the behaviour and comments made by John Galliano in a video made public on Monday, the Dior house decided to suspend him immediately and has engaged in a process to dismiss him.[52]
Honours
- British Designer of the Year (1987, 1994, 1995, 1997). In 1997, he shared the award with Alexander McQueen, his successor at Givenchy.
- Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2001 Birthday Honours List[67] for his services to the Fashion Industry as a Fashion Designer. He received his CBE on 27 November 2001 at Buckingham Palace in London, England.
- RDI for his contribution to the fashion industry (2002)
- Appearance on The Independent on Sunday's 2007 "pink list" for being one of "the most influential gay people in Britain"[68]
- French Legion of Honour (2009).[69] The medal was withdrawn by decree of the president of the Republic,
Personal life
In 2010, Galliano identified his love of theatre and femininity as central to his creations; he said "my role is to seduce", and credited Standard Oil heiress Millicent Rogers as an influence.[71]
He had a relationship with fellow Central St Martins student and fashion designer John Flett (1963–1991), whom he described as his soulmate.[72] Galliano currently shares his Paris home with his long-term partner Alexis Roche, a style consultant.[72][73] He is vegetarian for health reasons, telling French Elle that "The energy that I get from having fewer toxins in my body is extraordinary".[74]
External links
References
- David James Smith. The Secret Torments of Galliano Sunday Times Magazine, 22 August 2011^
- Belinda White. John Galliano Sacked from His Eponymous Label The Telegraph, 15 April 2011, retrieved 15 May 2012^
- Miles Socha. John Galliano Joins Maison Martin Margiela