Vale Thierry Mugler BY LIZ CLIFT ADIEU TO FASHION MOGUL MANFRED THIERRY MUGLER 1948-2022. HE WAS A DEFINING FORCE IN THE WORLD OF FASHION. A VISIONARY WHOSE IMAGINATION EMPOWERED PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD TO BE BOLDER AND DREAM. I was thrilled to be invited by my friend Liz Parsons to his 20th anniversary show in 1995 at Cirque d’Hiver in Paris; a spectacular event with Verushka, Tippi Hedron, Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Jerry Hall, Carmen Dell’Orefice to name a few of the A-list models. James Brown sang while male dancers in g-strings gyrated on podiums. Liz and I were invited to his private party that evening at a night club and we were out-numbered by men in latex and “trimmings”. After selling his brand name Thierry Mugler to Clarins in 2002 he reverted to his birth name Manfred, only to return to design the internet-breaking outfit for Kim Kardashian West for the 2019 Met Gala. The extravagant, bodyhugging ensemble consisted of latex and crystals suspended like water droplets, completed by a wet-look hairstyle and slick skin to embody the ultimate mermaid. The dress marked the first design Mugler had created for his namesake
house in two decades and took months to create. It joins the many thousands of magnificent Mugler gowns and designs from a career that embodied art, whimsy, fantasy and science fiction. “Fashion is a movie. Every morning when you get dressed, you direct yourself,” so stated Thierry Mugler himself. Born in Strasbourg, France in 1948, Thierry Mugler had an astonishing career; ballet dancer, photographer, fashion designer, artistic director for the stage and MTV videos, parfumier and stylist to the stars. His sense of fashion engineering has thrilled and surprised the fashion world at every turn and his diversity is legendary. In 1973 he created his first personal collection “Café de Paris” which was both urban and sophisticated. A powerful fashion editor Melka Treanton helped to launch his career. In 1976 she asked him to do a show in Tokyo for an event organised by Shiseido. He became a name to watch. 24 slim magazine Autumn 2022
