Emilio Pucci

Emilio Pucci was born in 1914 in Florence, Italy. He shot to couture stardom in the 1950's, during which he developped his signature prints: bold, abstract patterns that swirled in a kaleidoscope of color.

Emilio Pucci's ultimate vision was to liberate women. While fashion of the 1950's and early 60's dictated the wearing of girdles and crinolines, Pucci's soft silhouettes would usher in a new era of comfort and freedom of movement; all the while remaining infinitely chic and elegant.

Emilio Pucci with a model wearing a summer dress, 1953.

The international fashion press of the 60's adored his creations, hailing Pucci "The Prince of Prints". Vogue declared that Pucci had “largely invented the look of the woman of the moment—one might almost say he has invented the woman herself.”

"How's my hair?" Space Bubbles designed to protect stewardesses' hairdos...

In 1964, the now-defunct Braniff Airlines called upon Emilio Pucci to help radically update their corporate look, part of their "End of the Plain Plane" campaign. His answer was a space age collection which consisted of uniforms with interchangeable parts (of coordinating colors) and clear plastic helmets to protect stewardesses hairstyles from airstrip elements!

Emilio Pucci designs for Braniff International Airlines: 1965 (left), 1971 (right).

The "space bubble" was dropped after about a month, however: the helmets cracked easily, there was no place to store them onboard the aircraft, and new jetways at many airports made them unnecessary.

In 1954 and again in 1967, Pucci received the coveted Neiman-Marcus Fashion Award for "distinguished service in the field of fashion." In 1990, the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) honored him with an award for "renaissance of his design and color genius".

Today, the house of Pucci continues to be a status symbol and world renowned label. The timeless signature prints can be seen on everything from clothing, shoes and handbags, to furniture and housewares.

Modern-day Pucci designs still feature the signature psychedelic prints...

The following video was created for Emilio Pucci's 1990 CFDA award. It features the deee-lovely, deee-groovy Lady Miss Kier of Deee-Lite, with whom I will forever associate psychedelic Pucci-prints...

images: (1-2-3) emiliopucci.com
(4) braniffinternational.org
(5-6) tkd.blog6.fc2.com
(7) amazon.com
(8-9-10) style.com