Marc Bouwer is a fashion designer and

costume designer A costume designer is a person who designs costumes for a film, stage production or television show. The role of the costume designer is to create the characters' outfits or costumes and balance the scenes with texture and colour, etc. The costume ...

based in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. He is a member of the

Council of Fashion Designers of America The Council of Fashion Designers of America, Inc. (CFDA), founded in 1962 by publicist Eleanor Lambert, and headquartered in Manhattan, is a not-for-profit trade association comprising a membership of over 450 American fashion and accessory d ...

Career

Upon winning the South African Vogue Young Designers Award, Marc Bouwer moved to

. Shortly after, Bouwer's portfolio was noticed by designer

Halston Roy Halston Frowick (April 23, 1932 – March 26, 1990), known mononymously as Halston, was an American fashion designer who rose to international fame in the 1970s. His minimalist, clean designs, often made of cashmere or ultrasuede, were ...

. Bouwer apprenticed with Halston fine tuning his design skills, particularly draping. Bouwer's "cut" and modern use of stretch fabrics, such as

jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...

and

spandex Spandex, Lycra, or elastane is a synthetic fiber known for its exceptional elasticity. It is a polyether-polyurea copolymer that was invented in 1958 by chemist Joseph Shivers at DuPont's Benger Laboratory in Waynesboro, Virginia, US. The g ...

, in evening wear coined the term "bathing suit gown" and gave way to "athletic glamour". Opening house in 1990 with business partner, Paul Margolin, Marc Bouwer Couture has since graced the covers and pages of publications including Harper's Bazaar,

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

, Vanity Fair, Glamour, and

InStyle ''InStyle'' was an American monthly women's fashion magazine founded in 1994. It was published in the United States by Dotdash Meredith. In February 2022, it was announced that InStyle would cease print publications and move to a digital-only f ...

. Actress

Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie (; born Angelina Jolie Voight; June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian and former Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award ...

arrived at the 2004 Academy Awards in a white satin Marc Bouwer gown, later named one of the best Oscar dresses of all time by

André Leon Talley André Leon Talley (October 16, 1948 – January 18, 2022) was an American fashion journalist, stylist, creative director, and editor-at-large of ''Vogue'' magazine. He was the magazine's fashion news director from 1983 to 1987, its first Africa ...

. Most recently Bouwer helped in reintroducing us to loyal client and friend,

Shania Twain Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...

, designing the costumes for her Still The One Tour which opened December 1, 2012 at Caesars Palace. Bouwer was the first American designer to produce a virtual fashion show in response to economic struggle across the globe as well as in respect to the environment. As opposed to bringing us to

Bryant Park Bryant Park is a public park located in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Privately managed, it is located between Fifth Avenue and Avenue of the Americas ( Sixth Avenue) and between 40th and 42nd Streets in Midtown Manhattan. The e ...

, Bouwer took us, and his inaugural Spring/Summer 2009 collection, to the web. Not only did this new medium of fashion allow friends and clients to experience the collection if unable to physically attend a show, but it also opened the experience into the offices and homes of stylists, buyers, journalists, and fashionistas everywhere. Bouwer felt it was his "social and environmental responsibility" to pave way to such a movement "minimizing impact and waste". Bouwer virtually presented his Fall 2010 collection, starring

Candice Swanepoel Candice Susan Swanepoel (; ; born 20 October 1988) is a South African model and philanthropist. She is known for her work with Victoria's Secret. She became a Victoria's Secret Angel in 2010. In 2016, she was listed 8th on the ''Forbes'' top-ea ...

, before taking the experience one step further. In February 2011 Bouwer was the first designer to present a virtual 3D fashion show with his Fall 2011 collection starring model

Selita Ebanks Selita Ebanks (born 17 February 1983) is a Caymanian model and actress."Selita Ebanks ...

Awards

Bouwer's awards for avoiding animal products in his fashions include a PETA Humanitarian Award, and The United States Humane Societies “Compassion in Fashion Award”. Marc uses technology in designing, to create cruelty free fashion with high quality faux furs, garnering several PETA sponsorships.

Television appearances

References

External links

* http://marcbouwer.com/ * https://web.archive.org/web/20110228071441/http://www.elle.com/Runway/Ready-to-Wear/Spring-2008-Ready-to-Wear/MARC-BOUWER/MARC-BOUWER * http://www.cfda.com/members/?member_id=679&tab=a * https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1071153/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Bouwer, Marc Living people South African fashion designers Year of birth missing (living people)

Career

Awards

Television appearances

References

Further reading

External links