Victor Edelstein (born 10 July 1946) is a British former

couturier ''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 the ...

best known for his fashion designs for Diana, Princess of Wales, in the 1980s. In 1989 he was described as the English equivalent to

Oscar de la Renta Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo (22 July 1932 – 20 October 2014), known professionally as Oscar de la Renta, was a Dominican fashion designer. Born in Santo Domingo, he was trained by Cristóbal Balenciaga and Antonio del Castillo. De la Renta ...

, and "the master of the English thoroughbred look". He now works as a painter.

Early career

Edelstein was born in London. In 1962 he began working as a trainee designer for

Alexon Alexon (Ancient Greek: ) was an ancient Greek mercenary from Achaea, who served in the Carthaginian garrison at Lilybaeum while it was besieged by the Romans in 250 BC, during the First Punic War. During this siege some of the Gallic merce ...

. As well as Alexon and Salvador, he worked for Nettie Vogues, Clifton Slimline, and

Biba Biba was a London fashion store of the 1960s and 1970s. Biba was started and primarily run by the Polish-born Barbara Hulanicki with help of her husband Stephen Fitz-Simon. Early years Biba's early years were rather humble, with many of the ou ...

. In 1970 he launched his own label although it was short-lived. He then went on to spend three years working for the London branch of

Christian Dior S.A. Christian Dior SE (), commonly known as Dior (stylized DIOR), is a French luxury fashion house controlled and chaired by French businessman Bernard Arnault, who also heads LVMH, the world's largest luxury group. Dior itself holds 42.36% shares ...

under the direction of Jorn Langberg, before re-establishing his label in 1978. In 1982, Edelstein decided to focus exclusively on haute couture, and also designed for the theatre and ballet.

Clients

Blue velvet dress of Diana, Princess of Wales

Edelstein's workroom was based at Stanhope Mews West, London. His most famous design is probably the ink-blue velvet gown he created in 1985 for Diana, Princess of Wales, to wear to the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

, where she danced with actor John Travolta. This dress, on both occasions it sold at auction, set world record prices for a dress worn by Diana (£137,000 ($222,500) in 1996, and £240,000 ($362,424) in 2013). In addition to Diana, his clients included the

Duchess of Kent Duchess of Kent is the principal courtesy title used by the wife of the Duke of Kent. There have been four titles referring to Kent since the 18th century. The current duchess is Katharine, the wife of Prince Edward. He inherited the dukedom ...

, the Princess of Hanover,

Princess Michael of Kent Princess Michael of Kent (born Baroness Marie-Christine Anna Agnes Hedwig Ida von Reibnitz, 15 January 1945) is a member of the British royal family of German, Austrian, Czech and Hungarian descent. She is married to Prince Michael of Kent, ...

, the Countess of Snowdon,

Anna Wintour Dame Anna Wintour (; born 3 November 1949) is a British journalist based in New York City who has served as editor-in-Chief of ''Vogue'' since 1988 and Global Chief Content Officer for Condé Nast since 2020; she is also the artistic directo ...

Tina Brown Christina Hambley Brown, Lady Evans (born 21 November 1953), is an English journalist, magazine editor, columnist, talk-show host, and author of ''The Diana Chronicles'' (2007) a biography of Diana, Princess of Wales, '' The Vanity Fair Diarie ...

Michael Heseltine Michael Ray Dibdin Heseltine, Baron Heseltine, (; born 21 March 1933) is a British politician and businessman. Having begun his career as a property developer, he became one of the founders of the publishing house Haymarket. Heseltine served ...

's wife Anne, and Lady Nuttall, who commented that Edelstein's workroom was the only place her husband liked to accompany her when clothes-shopping. In the late 1980s, his prices were often around the £2,400 to £2,500 mark for an evening dress, with his clients typically buying three or four outfits each season (an evening gown, a suit, and one or two dinner dresses).

Later years

Edelstein closed his fashion house in 1993, explaining that there was no longer a market for luxurious custom-made clothing. Since then, he has established himself as an artist, exhibiting his work throughout Europe and the United States. His portrait of

Judith Martin Judith Martin (née Perlman; born September 13, 1938), better known by the pen name Miss Manners, is an American columnist, author, and etiquette authority. Early life and career Martin is the daughter of Helen and Jacob Perlman. Her father w ...

, the American etiquette authority known as 'Miss Manners', was commissioned by her husband as a 70th birthday present for her, and now hangs in the National Portrait Gallery, Washington. His wife, Annamaria Succi, is also a painter.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Edelstein, Victor Living people 1946 births English fashion designers English Jews 1977 establishments in England 1993 disestablishments in England 21st-century English painters English male painters Painters from London British people of German-Jewish descent 21st-century English male artists