French fashion designer Manfred Thierry Mugler, whose nipped-waist, highly-sexed silhouettes helped define ‘80s power dressing, died on Sunday at the age of 73, “from natural causes”, according to his agent Jean-Baptist Rougeot.
“We are devastated to announce the passing of Mr Manfred Thierry Mugler on Sunday January 23rd 2022,” read a post on the official Thierry Mugler Instagram account. “May his soul Rest in Peace.”
With a penchant for PVC, power shoulders and body-con silhouettes, Mugler transformed women into otherworldly, space-age creatures and his eponymous brand became known as an avant-garde, futuristic fashion force in the 80s an 90s. Part of a troupe of designers who pioneered splashy, theatrical fashion shows over the original restrained format, in which models silently wafted among editors, Mugler’s spectacles propelled models like Jerry Hall, Cindy Crawford and Tyra Banks to celebrity status.
Born in Strasbourg in 1948 Mugler trained as a ballet dancer as a child and joined the National Rhine Opera ballet age 14. He moved to Paris aged 20 where he worked as a stylist at various fashion houses before launching his eponymous label in 1974.
Mugler’s dance training informed his fluidly erogenous designs via an intimate understanding of the human body and how it moves. From his first collection, Café de Paris, he used futuristic spacey silhouettes and exaggerated forms to promote a thoroughly modern sensuality. In 1978, Mugler opened his first Paris boutique and launched a menswear line.
As per the request of France’s Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, Muglercreated his first haute couture collection in the early Nineties and branched into fragrance in the same year, with the launch of the now-iconic ‘Angel.’ The super-sweet patchouli-based chocolatey scent is one of the most successful perfumes of all time.
Mugler did much to change the fashion game. In 1984, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his brand, he became the first couturier to unveil his collection via a public event, with a runway show staged at the Zenith in the Villette district and attended by 6,000 paying audience members – a format now being replicated to much fanfare by Olivier Rousteing at Balmain. “Today’s fashion shows are a continuation of what Mugler invented,” said Didier Grumbach, the former chief executive of Thierry Mugler.
The 1984 event, like all Mugler shows, was less straightforward catwalk and more artistic performance, combining theatre, music and clothes. Models wore Olympic-inspired outfits and were transformed into angels, and for the finale model Pat Cleveland descended from the ceiling in a shower of petals.
This love of spectacle explains why Mugler, who was also a trained acrobat, was commissioned to create Cirque du Soleil’s fantastical stage costumes in 2003, the year after he stepped back from the label bearing his name.
Once separate from his brand, the designer continued to work on special dressing projects for celebrity friends; he was the brains behind Beyoncé ’s sci-fi Sacha Fierce wardrobe in the late 2000s and the architect of Kim Kardashian’s headline-making "wet look" dress for the 2019 Met Gala. Cardi B has also rocked many an archive Mugler look on the red carpet, with the sculptural vintage 1995/1996 ‘Venus’ gown she wore to the 2019 Grammy’s a memorable highlight.
Alongside designing clothing, Mugler, who began using his first name Manfred, spent his later life focused on redesigning his self-image via bodybuilding and cosmetic surgery. Just a few years ago, he posed for a nude photoshoot with Interview magazine, saying: “I think it’s important for people to be a complete realisation of themselves. I have always been fascinated by the human body, and I wanted to pay homage to what it can do.”
By the late 1990s, the blockbuster success of the Angel scent meant the Mugler brand was associated more with fragrance than fashion and the rights to his name were acquired by cosmetics giant Clarins in 1997. L’Oréal now produces the heady scent, having bought the label from Clarins a few years ago.
The fashion house was revived in 2010 under the creative direction of stylist Nicola Formichetti and later Casey Cadwallader, who took over in December 2017.
Tributes for the late designer have flooded social media. Beyoncé shared a photo of the designer on her website and wrote: "Rest in Peace."
Meanwhile, the Kardashian and Jenner sisters also shared tributes, with Kourtney posting a photo on her Instagram Stories of her and her siblings all wearing Mugler designs.
Georgia May Jagger, who became the face of his women’s fragrance Angel in 2014, described him as “a force of creativity and kindness.” While model Irina Shayk called him “God of fashion.”
Fellow designer Christian Siriano posted: “Another Icon lost today. Rest well in ultimate beauty Thierry Mugler You opened many many doors. Fashion is having a hard month.”
