Clare Waight Keller (born 19 August 1970) is a British stylist and

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 fashio ...

, who has served as the

Artistic Director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since th ...

for a number of luxury fashion houses and brands, including Pringle of Scotland,

Chloé Chloé () is a French luxury fashion house founded in 1952 by Gaby Aghion. During the next year of 1953 Aghion joined forces with Jacques Lenoir, formally managing the business side of the brand, allowing Aghion to purely pursue the creative ...

, and Givenchy.

Early life

Keller was born in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

, England on 19 August 1970. She studied at Ravensbourne College of Art, where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in Fashion, followed by a master's degree at the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It ...

Career

She started her career at

Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer who launched the company that would later become Calvin Klein Inc., in 1968. In addition to clothing, he also has given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, an ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

as a stylist for the women's ready-to-wear line, then at

Ralph Lauren Ralph Lauren, ( ; ; born October 14, 1939) is an American fashion designer, philanthropist, and billionaire businessman, best known for the Ralph Lauren Corporation, a global multibillion-dollar enterprise. He has become well known for his c ...

, for the Purple Label menswear line. In 2000, she was hired by

Tom Ford Thomas Carlyle Ford (born August 27, 1961) is an American fashion designer and filmmaker. He launched his eponymous luxury brand in 2005, having previously served as the creative director at Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent. Ford wrote and direct ...

to join

Gucci Gucci (, ; ) is an Italian high-end luxury fashion house based in Florence, Italy. Its product lines include handbags, ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories, and home decoration; and it licenses its name and branding to Coty, Inc. for fragranc ...

, responsible for women's ready-to-wear and accessories, until her departure in 2004. The following year, she became Artistic Director of Pringle of Scotland. In 2007, she received the Scottish Fashion Awards 'Designer of the Year' in the cashmere category. She resigned her position at Pringle of Scotland in 2011. In the same year, she moved to Paris where she became the Artistic Director of

. In 2017, Keller was appointed Artistic Director of haute couture and ready-to-wear for women and men at Givenchy. Replacing Riccardo Tisci, she was the first woman to hold the position at the company. She designed the

wedding dress A wedding dress or bridal gown is the dress worn by the bride during a wedding ceremony. The color, style and ceremonial importance of the gown can depend on the religion and culture of the wedding participants. In Western cultures and Anglo ...

which

Meghan Markle Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (; born Rachel Meghan Markle; August 4, 1981) is an American member of the British royal family and former actress. She is the wife of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, the younger son of King Charles III. Meghan was ...

wore for her

wedding A wedding is a ceremony where two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marriage vo ...

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984) is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger son of Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. He is fifth in the line of succ ...

, on 19 May 2018. For her second couture show, Waight Keller went through Givenchy's archives, and used modern materials "to create something that floats". In January 2019, for autumn/winter 19, Waight Keller presented her first standalone menswear collection for Givenchy 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. Si ...

. It was an intimate salon show that just consisted of 17 looks with a complete day to evening wardrobe. While future Givenchy

ready-to-wear Ready-to-wear (or ''prêt-à-porter''; abbreviated RTW; "off-the-rack" or "off-the-peg" in casual use) is the term for ready-made garments, sold in finished condition in standardized sizes, as distinct from made-to-measure or bespoke clothing ...

and

haute couture ''Haute couture'' (; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design that is constructed by hand from start-to-finish. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, Paris became th ...

shows will remain combined, this means Waight Keller's vision of Givenchy

menswear 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 ...

is given its own stage. She left Givenchy on 10 April 2020.

Awards and honours

At the 2018

British Fashion Awards The Fashion Awards, known as the British Fashion Awards until 2016, is an annual ceremony established in the United Kingdom in 1989 to showcase both British and international individuals and businesses who have made the most outstanding contribu ...

, Keller was presented the British Designer of the Year Womenswear Award by

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (; born Rachel Meghan Markle; August 4, 1981) is an American member of the British royal family and former actress. She is the wife of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, the younger son of King Charles III. Meghan wa ...

and actress

Rosamund Pike Rosamund Mary Ellen Pike (born 1979) is a British actress. She began her acting career by appearing in stage productions such as ''Romeo and Juliet'' and ''Gas Light''. After her screen debut in the television film ''A Rather English Marriage'' ...

. In 2019, ''Time'' magazine included Keller in its annual list of the most influential people of the year.

Personal life

She is married to Philip Keller, an architect. They have three children, twins Amelia and Charlotte, and Harrison.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keller, Clare Waight 1970 births Living people 20th-century English women artists 21st-century English women artists Alumni of the Royal College of Art Artists from Birmingham, West Midlands British women fashion designers English fashion designers Wedding dress designers