Rick Owens

Rick Owens remains one of the most daring and influential fashion designers working today. Often described as a-grunge-meets-glamor aesthetic, Owens has cultivated a devoted international following. In his creations, grace and grit are paired with an obsession with structural transformation and movement, where diaphanous, flowing shapes contrast with opaque forms and sharp edges, an approach to formal invention that is complimented by a mania for new and often exotic materials. Timed to coincide with the first comprehensive show of the designer s work taking place at the Palais Galliera in Paris in summer 2025, the scope and breadth of this exhibition promises to be a treat to both longtime fans and the uninitiated. Owens will reimagine the grand 19th-century palace housing the museum, with temporary installations that will serve as vitrines to his many creations. In effect dividing the book between the conception of showcases, and the precious objects that they display within, the curatorial essays bookending this visual narrative will attempt to describe the multidisciplinary, even architectural approach Owens has to his creations.

Since the establishment of his label in 1994, Rick Owens has transformed global fashion with his provocative clothing and subversive style. Distinguished by his grunge-meets-glamour aesthetic and defiant anti-fashion stance, Owens created a dark fashion empire that has accrued a devoted international following which gravitates toward the brand s sublime tailoring, somber palette, mystical layers, and gritty elegance. Filled with photographs of Owens s most impressive looks from the last decade, this volume is conceived as a celebration of the Rick Owens aesthetic, approximating with printing effects some of the mystery and detailing associated with brand. Iconic imagery taken from Owens s seminal lookbooks provides a unique look at the output of design from an artist who is at once comfortable with developing technologies and respectful of traditional approaches. With principal photography by Danielle Levitt who achieved considerable acclaim for her social-realist images this book is essential for lovers of avant-garde fashion, photography, and design.