I found his life story inspiring and it makes me want to keep pressing forward on my fashion journey!
FT
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| Via Cabbi Arts |
I put together two different bios for the designer:
Patrick
Kelly was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi, USA. He attended Jackson
State University where he studied art history.
He worked with a tailor in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, before moving to New York in 1976 to study at Parsons School of Design.
He worked with a tailor in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, before moving to New York in 1976 to study at Parsons School of Design.
n
1979, he went to Paris and began his career in the fashion business
by designing and selling cut-out cotton tube dresses, on the
pavements of the city. He soon has a large following for his
whimsical clothes. He also did a stint at a Rive Gauche boutique and
designed for Benetton. Kelly also became a costume designer for Le
Palais nightclub.
Huge buttons, abbreviated hemlines and a talent for tromp l'oeil, marked him as a natural New Yorker in Paris. His colourful clothes were a product of his Mississippi childhood and his long-held fascination with antique clothes.
Huge buttons, abbreviated hemlines and a talent for tromp l'oeil, marked him as a natural New Yorker in Paris. His colourful clothes were a product of his Mississippi childhood and his long-held fascination with antique clothes.
He
so impressed his French compatriots that he became the first American
designer to be elected to the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture
Parisienne.
Patrick was very unusual in many ways. He was certainly one of the first openly gay black fashion designers. Kelly's promising career was cut short by an early death on 1st January, 1990. He died in Paris, of bone marrow disease, a brain tumour and complications from AIDS.
Patrick was very unusual in many ways. He was certainly one of the first openly gay black fashion designers. Kelly's promising career was cut short by an early death on 1st January, 1990. He died in Paris, of bone marrow disease, a brain tumour and complications from AIDS.
On
28th March, 1990, the Fashion Institute of Technology, in New York
held a memorial to Patrick Kelly. They filled the windows of their
7th Avenue showrooms with his creations. All his friends in the
fashion industry, and the models who had worked with him, and the
clientele who had worn his clothes, gathered together to remember him
with great sadness.
The first retrospective of the design work of Patrick Kelly is being held at the Brooklyn Museum of Art from April to September 2004. It is in celebration of the opening of the BMA's new front entrance pavilion and public plaza, a $ 63 million dollar project of the City of Brooklyn and supporters of the museum. -via Fashionmodeldirectory
The first retrospective of the design work of Patrick Kelly is being held at the Brooklyn Museum of Art from April to September 2004. It is in celebration of the opening of the BMA's new front entrance pavilion and public plaza, a $ 63 million dollar project of the City of Brooklyn and supporters of the museum. -via Fashionmodeldirectory
January 1, 1990 Patrick Kelly, fashion designer, died.
Kelly was born September 24, 1954 in Vicksburg, Mississippi. He initially studied at the Parsons School of Design, but in 1979 moved to Paris, France. In 1985, he created Patrick Kelly Paris and began making outfits for Benetton and upscale Paris boutiques. In 1987, Kelly signed a $5 million contract to create a line of clothing for Warnaco which gave him international recognition.
In 1986, Time Magazine described his clothing as “fitted, funny and a little goofy” and in 1988 the Washington Post said “Patrick Kelly has a witty way with fashion.” Kelly was proud of his upbringing as an African American in Mississippi and it was reflected in his work. His clientele included Betty Davis, Grace Jones, and Jessye Norman. In 1988, Kelly became the first American voted in as a member of the Chambre Syndicale, an elite organization of designers based in Paris. In September, 2004, his work was the subject of an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. - Via TodayinAfricanAmericanHistory
