Antonio Berardi (born 1968)
''Lincolnshire Echo'' 19 March 2009; retrieved 30 April 2011 is a British fashion designer of Sicilian descent, known especially for his dresses. He currently shows his collection at London

fashion week A fashion week is a week-long fashion industry event where fashion designers, brands, or "houses" display their latest collections in runway fashion shows to buyers and the media which influences upcoming fashion trends for the current and appro ...

, but has shown at Milan and Paris in the past.

Early life and career

Berardi was born in

Grantham Grantham () is a market town and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the banks of the River Witham and bounded to the west by the A1 road (Great Britain), A1 road. It lies south of Lincoln, England ...

, in

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

. His parents were Sicilians who emigrated to Britain in the 1950s. He developed an interest in fashion at a young age. As a nine-year-old he saved his money for

Armani Giorgio Armani S.p.A. (), commonly known as Armani, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in Milan by Giorgio Armani which designs, manufactures, distributes and retails haute couture, ready-to-wear, leather goods, shoes, accessories, and ...

shirts with leather

gusset In sewing, a gusset is a triangular or rhomboidal piece of textiles, fabric inserted into a seam to add breadth or reduce stress from tight-fitting clothing. Gussets were used at the shoulders, underarms, and hems of traditional shirts and chemi ...

shoulders. After secondary school he decided on a career in design and, after attending Lincoln College of Art and Design, began working as an assistant to

John Galliano 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. From 2014 to 2024, Galliano was the creative director ...

. In 1990 he applied to

Central Saint Martins Central Saint Martins is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London, a public art university in London, England. The college offers full-time courses at foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and a variety of short ...

(for a third time) and was accepted to the programme led by

Wendy Dagworthy Wendy Dagworthy OBE (born 4 March 1950) is an English former fashion designer and now design academic. During her career she has led fashion design teaching at both the Royal College of Art and Central Saint Martins, mentoring notable fashion d ...

Aesthetic and influences

Berardi is known for his "sensual, figure-hugging dresses" and a "striking, classical, dressed-up" style featuring "advanced fabrics and manufacturing techniques." He has named music, independent film, post-modern art, Catholic symbolism, Italian art and culture, urban street style,

lingerie Lingerie (, , ) is a category of primarily women's clothing including undergarments (mainly brassieres), sleepwear, and lightweight robes. The choice of the word is often motivated by an intention to imply that the garments are alluring, fashio ...

, and the female form as his design influences."Antonio Berardi"
''London Fashion Week''; retrieved 30 April 2011 In

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

in 2003, he showed a coat illuminated with light bulbs that lit up to form a

crucifix A crucifix (from the Latin meaning '(one) fixed to a cross') is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the (Latin for 'body'). The cru ...

. He designed the ''

trompe-l'œil ; ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a Two-dimensional space, two-dimensional surface. , which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into perceiving p ...

corset A corset /ˈkɔːrsɪt/ is a support garment worn to constrict the torso into the desired shape and Posture correction, posture. They are traditionally constructed out of fabric with boning made of Baleen, whalebone or steel, a stiff panel in th ...

black-and white dress with lace detailing worn by

Gwyneth Paltrow Gwyneth Kate Paltrow ( ; born September 27, 1972) is an American actress and businesswoman. The daughter of filmmaker Bruce Paltrow and actress Blythe Danner, she established herself as a leading lady appearing in mainly mid-budget and perio ...

in November 2008 at the premiere of the film '' Two Lovers'', named " Dress of the Year" for 2009 by

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' (stylized as ''Harper's BAZAAR'') is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. Bazaar has been published in New York City since November 2, 1867, originally as a weekly publication entitled ''Harper's Bazar''."Corporat ...

magazine.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berardi, Antonio Alumni of Central Saint Martins English fashion designers English people of Sicilian descent Living people 1968 births English businesspeople People from Grantham