{"id":36581,"date":"2016-08-31T16:19:51","date_gmt":"2016-08-31T14:19:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sleek-mag.com\/?p=36581"},"modified":"2016-08-31T16:19:51","modified_gmt":"2016-08-31T14:19:51","slug":"why-tom-fords-tenure-at-gucci-was-so-memorable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sleek-mag.com\/de\/article\/why-tom-fords-tenure-at-gucci-was-so-memorable\/","title":{"rendered":"Warum Tom Ford's Amtszeit bei Gucci so denkw\u00fcrdig war"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\"Tom Image Courtesy of Business of Fashion<\/a><\/p>\n

 
\nAs Tom Ford turned fifty-five last week, Ira Solomatina looks back at his career, ahead of the live streaming of his AW’16 runway show in New York today
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Gucci Years<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The Texas-born designer was appointed Creative Director of Gucci in 1994, when the brand was going through its hardest phase \u2013 previous chief designer Dawn Mello had just walked out of Gucci to join Bergdorf Goodman, and the sales were dropping.
\nKnown for leather goods, scarves and slightly anachronistic knits, Gucci hardly had a story to tell, and the newly appointed Creative Director was given a total carte blanche. Vogue\u2019s Sarah Mower remembers that the publicist for Gucci was begging fashion editors to attend Ford\u2019s debut womenswear show \u2013 by 1995 journalists were begging to be let in.
\nIn the 1990s Tom Ford presented a sequence of strong collections: the famous sensual white dresses with provocative cut-outs from 1995 were followed by the 1996 combined show with hyper-sexy outfits for women, sleek suits and hip-hugging trousers for men. Models of both sexes were donning strings making some conservative fashion editors blush.
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\"Tom Kate Moss Backstage at Gucci 1996. Image Courtesy of Artificial Gallery.<\/a><\/p>\n

 
\nGucci became sexy. On and off the runway as seduction permeated Gucci\u2019s ads. In collaboration with\u00a0Carine Roitfeld and Mario Testino, Ford produced scandalous campaigns that earned him the reputation of fashion\u2019s greatest provocateur. Despite severe criticism Ford\u2019s policy at Gucci proved effective \u2013 the sales were boosting, the buzz was escalating and Ford\u2019s role at the newly founded Gucci Group conglomerate was increasingly important.
\nWhen Gucci Group acquired Yves Saint Laurent in 2000 Ford was invited to reinvent the brand much to displeasure of its founder. “The poor man does what he can”, acidly commented Saint Laurent on Ford\u2019s overtly sexy designs for the ready-to-wear line. The press and the customers, on the other hand, loved Ford\u2019s sensual take on YSL\u2019s legacy.
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\"Tom Tom Ford Backstage at Gucci. Image courtesy of Resurrection Vintage<\/a><\/p>\n

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Break-up with Gucci<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Ford who always was more than just a designer at Gucci was expected to become brand\u2019s CEO in 2006. Instead, he left Gucci Group in 2004 unable to meet the demands of one of the conglomerate\u2019s biggest shareholder.
\nThe divorce between the designer and the conglomerate lead to an ugly affair \u2013 public accusations were coming from both sides while sordid details were relished by the press. Later, in an interview with Women\u2019s Wear Daily Ford said: “Money had absolutely nothing to do with it at all. It really was a question of control”.
\nBreaking from the company, Ford pursued his established image in the Fashion industry to launch his own brand and direct the critically acclaimed “Single Man”, leaving behind Gucci who once again faced stagnant sales and struggled to fill Ford\u2019s position as creative director.
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\"Tom Tom Ford Directing Ein einzelner Mann\u00a0<\/em>with Colin Firth. Photo Courtsey of Collider<\/a><\/p>\n

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Ford\u2019s Legacy<\/strong><\/h3>\n

As Gucci Museum opened in 2011 in Florence, it became obvious that Gucci Group was still holding a grudge against Tom Ford. While the exhibition included signature Gucci florals, red carpet dresses by the then chief designer Frida Giannini, and leather bags from Gucci\u2019s early years, the Ford decade was simply air brushed out of the brand\u2019s history.
\nIn June 2016 the museum opened two additional rooms \u2013 dedicated solely to Tom Ford, they contain exhibits hand-picked by Alessandro Michele himself \u2013 slithery white dresses, chubby colourful furs and the scandalous ads that have acquired an almost cult status. It is remarkable, that Michele, when he joined the brand, was interviewed by Ford and though his almost nerdy aesthetic is strikingly different from Ford\u2019s bold style, he accepts that there should be different aspects of one brand represented.
\nAfter all, it is only fair that Gucci finally did justice to Ford\u2019s contribution to the brand\u2019s history. If not for Ford there would have been no Gucci as we know it today. There, perhaps, would also be no Gucci Group, which now transformed into the influential Kering. Ford might have imbued Gucci with sexiness, but more importantly, his tenure at Gucci marked the beginning of the era of star designers, powerful creative directors, whose responsibilities span over designing and marketing.
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\"Gucci Gucci SS1998. Image courtesy of The Fashion Law<\/a><\/p>\n

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Ford To Come<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Taking leave of Gucci\u2019s helm, Tom Ford launched his own label in 2006 with menswear, beauty, eyewear and accessories and has continued to be at the forefront of fashion debuts when showing his collections each season. Ford followed an unconventional direction to debut his first womenswear collection as a private intimate affair with no photography allowed. It took place on a Sunday evening in 2011 in his New York Flagship store, the collection modelled by an ultra-exclusive catwalk of his close friends including Julianne Moore, Daphne Guinness, Chanel Iman and Beyonc\u00e9 to name some.
\nIntrigued by the concept of using the web as a format for non-traditional fashion presentation, last year Tom Ford produced fashion film with Nick Knight, director of SHOWstudio, to debut his SS16 collection in conjunction with Paris Fashion Week . The ability to incorporate visual and design elements beyond the limitation of the traditional catwalk was something that excited Tom Ford. \u201cThe video captures the spirit of the collection in a way that a filmed traditional show would not have\u201d. Filmed and produced in LA, it features Lady Gaga vocal cover of Nile Rodger\u2019s \u201870s hit for Chic \u201cI Want Your Love\u201d, with Lady Gaga herself shimmering down a runway performing alongside Ford\u2019s selection of his favorite models Lexi Boling, Xiao Wen Ju, Lida Fox and Lucky Blue Smith.
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