Claude Montana (29 June 1947 in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
) is a French
fashion designer
Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion in ...
. His company, The House of Montana, founded in 1979, went bankrupt in 1997.
Early life and Design career
Born in Paris in 1947 to a
Catalan
Catalan may refer to:
Catalonia
From, or related to Catalonia:
* Catalan language, a Romance language
* Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia
Places
* 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
father and a German mother, Montana began his career by designing papier-mâché jewelry covered with rhinestones. Later, he discovered leather and the complex techniques associated with it, eventually becoming a leading force in leather. His first fashion show took place in 1976. He attracted attention the following year for his leather coats and in 1978 was among the most extreme in presenting the
broad shoulders that were introduced for the fall of that year, joining
Thierry Mugler
Manfred Thierry Mugler (; 21 December 1948 – 23 January 2022) was a French fashion designer, creative director and creative adviser of Mugler. In the 1970s, Mugler launched his eponymous fashion house; and quickly rose to prominence in the fo ...
in showing
massively-shouldered retro sci-fi looks at the end of the seventies, both designers also using the most influential footwear designer of the time,
Maud Frizon
Maud Frizon de Marco (born Danielle Maud Frizon; 1941 in Paris, France) is a fashion designer specializing in women's shoes. She began her career in the 1960s as a model for Parisian Haute Couture Houses of Nina Ricci (designer), Nina Ricci, Jean P ...
, for the shoes in their collections. Like Mugler and like
Azzedine Alaïa and a few others of this period, Montana's designs displayed a longing for styles of the 1940s and '50s. He was an avid colorist and favored blue, red, metallic, and neutral tones, in luxurious materials such as cashmere, leather and silk. He started his own company, The House of Montana, in 1979, and quickly became a darling of
1980s high fashion along with
Thierry Mugler
Manfred Thierry Mugler (; 21 December 1948 – 23 January 2022) was a French fashion designer, creative director and creative adviser of Mugler. In the 1970s, Mugler launched his eponymous fashion house; and quickly rose to prominence in the fo ...
, who also favored aggressive shapes and strong colours. Through 1986, he would continue to be associated with exaggerated shoulder pads, even declaring in 1985, "Shoulders forever," but in 1987 he began to soften his style, with some moves in that direction as early as 1984, and in 1988 he presented much-reduced shoulders and even shoulderless tops in an architectural but softened spring collection that focused on standaway waists, collars, and jacket fronts, the lines reminding fashion historian
Bill Cunningham Bill Cunningham may refer to:
People
*Bill Cunningham (rugby union) (1874–1927), New Zealand rugby union player
* Bill Cunningham (footballer), Irish international footballer active in the 1890s
*Bill Cunningham (infielder) (1886–1946), profe ...
of the sculpture of
Jean Arp
Hans Peter Wilhelm Arp (16 September 1886 – 7 June 1966), better known as Jean Arp in English, was a German-French sculptor, painter, and poet. He was known as a Dadaist and an abstract artist.
Early life
Arp was born in Straßburg (now Stras ...
. By fall of 1988, he had moved in most of his garments to a completely natural shoulder while still maintaining a commanding line, now given to a geometric trapeze shaping that extended even to wide-hemmed pants, a silhouette he would focus on through the first half of 1989. At the end of the eighties, he, along with
Romeo Gigli
Romeo Gigli (born 1949) is an Italian fashion designer who was described in the late 1980s as singlehandedly changing the course of fashion by the '' Los Angeles Times''.
Early life
Gigli was born in Castel Bolognese. Orphaned at the age of 18, h ...
, contributed to a trend toward dramatic collar treatments on the now-natural shoulders of his garments. In the earliest 1990s, Montana returned somewhat to futuristic looks, this time joining a trend toward sixties
Space Age
The Space Age is a period encompassing the activities related to the Space Race, space exploration, space technology, and the cultural developments influenced by these events, beginning with the Sputnik_1#Launch_and_mission, launch of Sputnik 1 ...
revival, with sharply tailored suits featuring vivid colors, prominent zippers, stretch fabrics, and angular but narrow shoulders.
Creations
In 1981, Montana designed his first collection for men, called ''Montana Hommes,'' in which he focused on the color and material of each garment rather than trivial details. From 1990 to 1992 he designed haute couture collections for the
House of Lanvin, for which he received two consecutive Golden Thimble awards. Despite critical acclaim, Montana's bold designs were financially disastrous for the house, created at a total estimated loss of $50 million, and he was ultimately replaced by Dominique Morlotti. In 1999, he designed an affordable line of clothing for women, ''Montana BLU.'' It was inspired by his favorite themes but modified to fit the style of sportswear and citywear.
Fashion Shows
Montana's fashion shows excelled in styling as well as in presentation. Because of their vibrations, modelling for Montana became prestigious and invitations to his shows the hottest tickets in town. With fashion's return to harder lines in 2007 Montana has become an inspiration for many designers.
Alexander McQueen
Lee Alexander McQueen CBE (17 March 1969 – 11 February 2010) was a British fashion designer and couturier. He founded his own Alexander McQueen label in 1992, and was chief designer at Givenchy from 1996 to 2001. His achievements in fashion ...
praised and honored Montana many times in his collections. Both designers shared a love for construction and high quality.
Personal life
On July 21, 1993, Montana married model Wallis Franken. It was a
marriage of convenience
A marriage of convenience is a marriage contracted for reasons other than that of love and commitment. Instead, such a marriage is entered into for personal gain, or some other sort of strategic purpose, such as a political marriage. There are ...
and friendship, as Montana was openly homosexual. He wanted to appear more marketable to polysexual buyers, and she was his best choice for this purpose. They were the same age, had been friends for 18 years, and she had served as his muse for many of his fashion innovations. Wallis already had two daughters and a granddaughter by a previous marriage. In June 1996, Wallis died after falling three stories from their Paris apartment. The death was ruled a suicide.
Author
In October 2010 it was announced that Claude Montana and Marielle Cro were working on a coffee-table book documenting Montana's career. The book, "Claude Montana: Fashion Radical," includes photos and interviews with insiders who witnessed Montana's career firsthand. It came out in April 2011 in the U.S and U.K.
Awards
* Best Women's Collection, Summer 1985, Paris.
* Best European Designer, Fall/Winter 1987/88, Munchener Modewoche, Germany.
* Balenciaga Prize for Best Designer, 1989.
* Golden Thimble Award, 1991, 1992.
References
Montana Websiteat infomat.com.
at Fédération Française de la Couture.
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montana, Claude
French fashion designers
LGBT fashion designers
1949 births
Living people
21st-century LGBT people
French people of German descent