His Humble Beginning.
On September 24th around 1954, Patrick Kelly was born in a little city in Mississippi. It is only assumed what year he was born because his age was always kept secret. Kelly once said:
"I never tell my age because I hope I'll always be the new kid on the block."
Growing up in a middle class family in the south meant that as a child Kelly did not have much fashion influences. It is when his grandmother brought in a fashion magazine one morning that it struck an interest for the young Kelly. He was about six years old! What struck him the most was the fact that there was not a single african american model and the lack of an african american influence in the fashion magazine hit Kelly. From that moment he knew that he was determined to change this.
Despite all the formally trained fashion designers of our time, Kelly had no formal training. He was a self-taught talent. From high school to a short time in university, Kelly decided to leave his hometown and escape the oppressive racial tensions in order to pursue his fashion dreams. When arriving in Atlanta, he worked at the American Veterans Organization. From this, he was able to work his way into the industry by volunteering to help decorate the windows at Yves St Laurent.
From Atlanta to New York City.
With the advice of a dear friend, Kelly continued his journey to the city where anything is possible, New York City. it is here that Patrick decided to attend the prestigious Parsons School of Design. With the incredible tuition fees, he struggled with a part time job at an ice cream shop yet made ends meet by selling his dresses to models and friends. After his short stay in New York, Kelly was offered an anonymous trip to Paris in 1979. After such uncertainty, he took the bull by the horns and left the city. It is evident now that his talent would have never been fully appreciated in New York. His luck would grow drastically almost the minute he got of the plane. In the blink of an eye he was hired as a costume designer for a nightclub.
"I can't say I wouldn't have made it in New York because I didn't stay to find out."
Kelly worked for the nightclub, yet he never gave up creating his own personal designs. It is with a lot of hard work that the people began to recognize his creative ideas and demand them. Kelly was never scared of a new challenge and he tried anything that would remotely allow him to be seen in the industry. In 1984, he was hired by a Victoire, a known paris boutique. A short year after his being hired by Victoire, Kelly decided to branch out on his own. He and good friend slash lover slash photographer, Bjorn Amelan, joined forces and created what is known to be Patrick Kelly Paris.
After establishing his name in Paris, Kelly was introduced to Linda Wachner, the CEO of Warnaco, and apparel manufacturer. INCREDIBLY, Kelly signed a 5 MILLION dollar contract to create a clothing line for them. This gave him an amazing reputation and a name that resonated internationally. Continually, Kelly produced incredible designs and quality that could not be surpassed it seemed. From his contract with Warnaco, he also signed contracts with Vogue, ye VOGUE Patterns and Streamline Industries for his re-known BUTTONS. Business was good and his name was blossoming. Not only was Kelly a respected figure in the industry, he also raised his annual revenue from ONe million to more than SEVEN million dollars.
His Personal Touch.
Patrick Kelly began his career selling clothing to aspiring models and girlfriends. His look was different from everything on the New York scene in the eighties. His earliest influences and creative inspirations were from his grandmother. Kelly would look at his grandmother replace lost buttons on clothing with anything she could find that could make do. Due to this early influence, big and colourful buttons become the TRADEMARK of Kelly's line.
As the Washington Post described him in 1988, "Patrick Kelly has a witty way with fashion." In 1986 Time magazine described his clothes as "fitted, funny, and a little goofy."
From the moment he stepped onto the fashion scene, Kelly was seen as carefree, sweet and over-the-top! He never took his work TOO seriously. From his oversized overalls to his baseball cap, Patrick Kelly could be spotted within a crowd. Another crazy and witty thing that made Patrick Kelly one of the most memorable and intriguing men of the fashion industry to date would be that: At the start of his shows he would enter the stage dressed in his usual overall attire and actually spray-paint a huge red heart on the backdrop of the runway!!
The End of his Beginning.
It is in 1988 that Kelly's hard work and perseverance was acknowledged when he was voted in as a member of the elite Chambre Syndicale in Paris. The Chambre Syndicale has only recognized a select few designers as being important enough in the industry. Being a part of this exclusive chambre means being one of the few designers who are allowed to deem their collections Haute Couture. Incredibly, Kelly was the FIRST American designer to join the ranks of famous and respected designers such as Yves St Laurent and Christian Lacroix. Being an Haute Couture designer meant that Kelly was the first African American designer to be a part of this group as well as having the privilege of showing at the Louvre Palace. Known for his fun take on such serious and obnoxious subjects, Kelly's first show at the Louvre Palace was none other than a SPoof on the beloved Mona Lisa.
Tragically, a turbulent and short two years after being entered into the Chambre Syndicale, the incredible and fun designer died of AIDS. He had been secretly battling AIDS for many years without ever having told a soul.
Sources
http://www.geoclan.com/style/articles/05/TheLifeofPatrickKellyFashionDesigner.html
http://mrpeacockstyle.blogspot.com/2009/03/button-homage-to-patrick-kelly.html
http://wendybrandes.com/blog/2008/05/meet-80s-designer-patrick-kelly/
http://www.fashionmodeldirectory.com/designers/patrick-kelly/
Quotes
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/
http://www.nytimes.com/ref/membercenter/nytarchive.html
