Fashion Icon Friday: Marc Jacobs
In 2010 he was named in Time Magazine’s “2010 Time 100” list of 100 most influential people in the world along with President Barack Obama and culture icon Elton John. In 2012 he was ranked #14 on Out Magazine’s list of “50 Most Powerful Gay Men and Women in America”. He has been the Creative Director at Louis Vuitton since 1997 and the head designer for Marc Jacobs and Marc by Marc Jacobs. But one could say that accomplishments like that are only had when one is a true visionary.
As a young boy Marc Jacobs had no doubt whatsoever that he would be working in the fashion industry. After working for a now-discontinued boutique in New York City in his teens, Marc began exploring schools and decided that Parsons School of Design would be the launching pad for what he knew would be a fashion industry-altering career. In the mid-1980s he formed Jacobs Duffy Designs Inc. (which, by the way, continues to this day) with Robert Duffy, but it wasn’t until 1986 that Jacobs designed the very first pieces under the Marc Jacobs label. Shortly after, he received the Council of Fashion Designers of America Perry Ellis Award for “New Fashion Talent” — the youngest designer to have ever been given such an accord. After many more esteems, Marc Jacobs joined the French fashion giant, Louis Vuitton, in 1997 under the title of Creative Director where he launched the company’s very first ready-to-wear clothing line. In 2001 the world was gifted with Marc by Marc Jacobs, a diffusion line, and in 2006 Jacobs distributed his first fragrances.
But with success comes a myriad of other attention. In 2008 Jacobs felt the first tinge of legal battles when he was accused of plagiarizing a scarf design from the 1950s by designer Gosta Olofsson. This was settled out of court. Two years later Jacobs was back in court but this time he was the accuser suing Ed Hardy for infringing on the designs of one of his embroidered purses. Jacobs’ career was virtually unscathed by both instances.
Today, Marc Jacobs is planning to expand his brand even further with a new makeup line in collaboration with Sephora which the world is waiting on the edge of its seat to see! But it’s his tenacity and fervor that gets our attention. Marc Jacobs flourishes to the beat of his own drum and rarely ever worries about what other people think of him. It is success despite the odds that make him this week’s icon.
Check out this really great piece we found on Marc Jacobs in Vogue from over 10 years ago.
