Olivier Theyskens

Olivier Theyskens (Dutch pronunciation: [oːliviˌjeː ˈtɛiskəns]; born January 4, 1977) is a Belgian fashion designer who has worked with major design houses, including Rochas, Nina Ricci and Theory.

Theyskens was born to a Belgian chemical engineer and a French homemaker. Theyskens attended École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Visuels de la Cambre in October 1994 to study fashion design.^[1] He dropped out in 1997 to start his own label.^[2][3]

Theyskens submitted pieces from his collection, “Gloomy Trips” to a Belgian group show. Stylist Arianne Phillips saw photographs of his works and dressed Madonna in one of Theyskens’ black satin coatdresses for the 1998 Academy Awards.^[4] André Leon Talley listed the dress as one of his favorite Oscar dresses of all time.^[5]

Theyskens presented his first full collection in Paris in 1998.^[6] The collection was a deconstruction of eighteenth-century style that reworked traditional French fabrics.^[4] His spring 1999 collection was featured on Vogue’s list of “25 Most Unforgettable Runway Shows of the ‘90s.”^[7] By fall 2000, Vogue reported that “Theyskens has established himself as one of the most powerful creative personalities in fashion.”^[8] That same year, he won the Venus de la Mode award.^[9] The collection he presented in Fall 2001 “was undoubtedly one of the strongest, most brilliant collections of the season” according to Vogue.^[10] Theyskens' line continued until 2002.^[11]

Theyskens became creative director of Rochas in 2002 and presented his first collection for the House of Rochas in 2003^[1] where he created an "entirely new silhouette for the house" that was French-influenced and elegant. In 2003, Theyskens designed costumes for Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie^[2] including costumes for Verdi's opera I due Foscari.^[12] Theyskens received the Star Award by the Fashion Group International at its 22nd Annual Night of Stars Gala in 2005.^[13]

In July 2006, Rochas' parent company Procter & Gamble announced the discontinuation of Rochas' fashion division^[6] because it was the only fashion business in the company and Procter & Gamble did not have the resources or skills to continue production of ready-to-wear fashion.^[14] In 2006, the Council of Fashion Designers of America awarded Theyskens the International Award.^[6][15]

In November 2006, Theyskens became artistic director at Nina Ricci^[1] where his focus shifted to a younger, more casual level of dressing. His collections for the House of Nina Ricci were met with critical acclaim.^[16][17]

In fall 2009, Theyskens left Nina Ricci and was replaced by Peter Copping, formerly design director of Louis Vuitton.^[18]

Theory CEO Andrew Rosen tapped Theyskens to design a capsule collection for Theory in spring 2010.^[19] Theyskens was named artistic director of the company in October 2010. In June 2014, he left Theory to pursue other design projects.^[20][16][21] His last collection for Theory was pre-spring 2015.^[22][23]

In 2016, Theyskens debuted his first collection under his own name for more than a decade. The brand was entirely self-funded.^[24]

In 2020, Theyskens was named artistic director of Azzaro, with responsibility for the brand’s couture collections, ready-to-wear lines, and accessories for women and men; he succeeded Maxime Simoëns.^[25][26]

In 2010, Assouline Publishing released a retrospective look at Theysken’s work, “The Other Side of the Picture,” which was the culmination of a 10-year collaboration with art photographer Julien Claessens.^[15]

Theyskens' creations have been worn by Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett, Reese Witherspoon, Emma Watson, Diane Kruger, Greta Gerwig, Felicity Jones, Jennifer Aniston, Mylene Farmer, Bella Hadid and Kirsten Dunst.^[20][6][15]

• A MAGAZINE curated by
• Olivier Theyskens at FMD