Jean Paul Gaultier Fashions

Jean Paul Gaultier is one of the biggest and recognizable names in the fashion industry today. Gaultier is a legendary French fashion designer born in April 19 1952 who did not actually receive any formal training in tailoring and designs. His passion for the craft however, led him to send out numerous sketches to top couture designers during his young age. Pierre Cardin, one of the designers who received his sketches, was amazed by his work and appointed him as an assistant in 1970.

In 1976, Gaultier was finally able to release his very own collection under his own name. Since then, he was dubbed as "the terrible child of French Fashion," with his display of great tailoring skills and for his versatility to come up with different design genres - from the unusual to the formal pieces. Although most of his early designs were very flamboyant and impractical to wear, many established designers in the country recognized his talent and potential.

Jean Paul Gaultier was one of the people who introduced quite a number of unusual trends - which eventually became one of the most legendary in the fashion industry. Aside from that, he always had a peculiar choice of models - from voluptuous women to whole-body tattooed models. He also caused a little stir as he played with gender and clothes on some of his runway shows.

Gaultier popularized the man skirts in 1995 and was the genius behind Madonna's cone bra which was one of the highlights of her Blond Ambition Tour in 1990. Over time, the designer garnered praise and criticism for his unconventional and unusual designs and works. Jean Paul Gaultier is also a top favorite wardrobe designer and has worked with many film and concert productions from the sci-fi movie, Fifth Element in 1997 to costume for several of Marilyn Manson's concerts.

In 1988, Gaultier ventured outside the fashion industry and went into the recording business where he released several dance singles and remix albums. On the same year, the designer expanded his clothing line to the younger market with his hip and more affordable collection called the Junior Gaultier. Although the pieces were only sold in selected stores in Paris, it was later introduced into the U.S. which also became a hit among the American teens.

The designer's work was finally recognized when he won the French Fashion Oscar Award in 1987. In 1993, Jean Paul Gaultier released his very first perfume line, the Haute Perfumerie, carrying with it the same playfulness and whim to perfume products. His collection was made exclusively for women. Two years later, he opened his fragrance collection for men, which became a huge hit in Europe, United States and Australia.

In 2003, the prestigious Hermes fashion house hired him as the house's chief designer and his work in the Fall/Winter Collection of 2004 became the very first designs that were not made under his name. Today, Jean Paul Gaultier designs three collections: one for his couture line, one for his ready-to-wear collection and the last one for the collections under the Hermes fashion house. Although his work has always been labeled as over-the-edge, his novel designs are a great inspiration to many budding designers in the industry.